Hello! Thanks for stopping by! If you’re looking for the latest happenings, please visit me at the following sites:
For those of you who have a date all lined up for the big day, don’t forget to brush up on your date etiquette.
Yes, I am still alive and did make it home safely from Italy. As much as I’d like to do a Semester Abroad Wrap-Up post, it is simply impossible to know where to begin talking about such a life-changing experience. I suppose the thing to do is to allow the stories to come out organically because when I try to talk about it now, one thing leads to another…and I’m afraid all the good stuff gets lost in translation.
In the meantime, my goal for this semester is to get out and take more pictures! And now that I’m back into my graphic design classes, I’ll have more of that sort of thing (not to be confused with this sort of thing) to post here as well.
Ciao for now!
I just wanted to write a quick post to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving! While normally it’s not celebrated in Italy (for obvious reasons), us Americans are being treated to a Thanksgiving dinner at the restaurant where we normally have our meals. We know there will be a massive turkey, and a group of us made apple pies to bring for dessert, but other than that, it will be a surprise as to what side dishes we’ll have! After dinner, it’s time for Christmas decorating and I think most of us are glad that we can now “officially” blast Christmas music.
With only about three weeks until I fly home, I will try my best to write one or two more posts but unfortunately, my computer screen decided to poop out on me this week. I’m using a spare computer that belongs to the program and while it works (most of the time), it’s not the best computer. So please be patient and don’t expect any more photo posts until I’m back home.
Again, happy Thanksgiving!
Photographs from Rome
(Click on the photo to view it LARGE)
St. Peter’s Basilica
My wonderful roommate Angela
Piazza Navona
Trevi Fountain
Caitlin’s tweed Converse
Statue near Castel Sant’Angelo
As many of you know, last month I took a course called “Poetry and Ekphrasis.” Ekphrasis is a big word that means “written interpretation of visual art.” So basically in class we wrote poems about or inspired by artwork. Orvieto has no lack of religious artwork to write about, and we used some of it for our poetry. It gets tiring writing about Mary and baby Jesus after a while, though, so we were also given the option of using a modern piece of art on occasion or writing about a piece of artwork created by the students in the drawing class. Our professor was the talented Julia Kasdorf from Pennsylvania State University. She’s a published poet and really knows her stuff. We wrote two poems each week for four weeks and at the end of the course chose five of our best or favorite poems to revise. Out of those five, we chose three poems from each student to include in a final anthology. I’m currently in the process of designing the book that we will then take to the printer. It won’t be anything fancy but it will be wonderful to have something to show for all of our hard work!
Since I’m sure nobody ever suspected that I was a poet (myself included), you’re probably curious to read what I’ve written. I’m a bit self-conscious about sharing my work but, as Julia said, artists have to be warriors so below I have bravely added one of my poems that will be in the anthology. It is based on the Genesis relief carvings on the facade of the Orvieto Duomo. The assignment was to write about an aspect of the Duomo facade, incorporating found text and/or pieces of conversations heard while sitting at the Duomo. Here’s the result.
Cain’s Legacy
“And I here make a rule: a great and lasting story is about everyone or it will not last.” †
Bodies in marble,
Perpetually created
And forever cast out.
The offerings do not cease;
Abel never lives.
Outsiders pass,
Engrossed in conversation:
Only 4 euros. It’s a gift, you know.
A torrent of words
That tell no story.
And, of course,
People are interested
Only in themselves.
If a story is not about the hearer
He will not listen.†
Adam and Eve are
Unable to react;
I better go intervene. She might waste it all.
Eve’s inscrutable face
Does not betray her past.
I was created
Once, cast out
Since birth;
Constantly in motion
But never moving.
They come
With their cameras
To remember
What they cannot escape.
Cain never rests.
† Text from East of Eden by John Steinbeck
There are certain time-honored traditions in Italian society that have been around since before Italy was, well, Italy. The drinking of wine with meals, the afternoon reposo, and excessive consumption of carbohydrates are excellent Italian institutions. But my favorite has nothing to do with food or sleeping (oddly enough); it’s the passageata. When the sun begins to set and the Orvietani wake from the peaceful slumber only experienced at reposo, they get a little dressed up and take to the streets to reconnect after a day at work or school. It is the time to see and be seen. It is beautiful to witness the joy on the faces of the people when they meet in the street. It’s unbridled and genuine and it fills me with a sense of well-being. At the same time, I can’t help but feel a little sad that I’m not able to be a part of it all, not in the same way. But I make do and enthusiastically greet classmates that are also out roaming around. The passageata is where one finds the true heart of Italy, in its people.
In unrelated school news, this coming week will be the last of my poetry course. Who knew I could write poetry? I might be persuaded to post some of my work after I’m finished with revisions. We’ll see how brave I’m feeling at the end of it all.
As always, click on the photo to view it BIGGER and BETTER.
Italian bathrooms are not unlike those in other European countries: relatively small but not without modern conveniences. The bathrooms at Monastery San Paolo, my home, generally adhere to this generalization, except for the shower. The shower in my room consists of a showerhead mounted on the wall, sort of in the corner, a small drain in the almost-imperceptibly sloped floor, and a shower curtain to enclose the cramped corner. There’s not much room to maneuver since the shower is very nearly on top of the toilet. Water tends to find its way across the bathroom floor but I suppose it’s not much of an exodus considering the size of the place. The available floor space is limited by the inclusion of a bidet next to the toilet. I’m fairly certain that there is some sort of national law requiring bathrooms to have bidets. I have no conventional use for such a device (I don’t see how that can be comfortable) so I have found an alternate use for it: quick and easy footbath. It’s really quite ingenious, if I do say so myself. Just lower the lid of the adjacent toilet seat, have a sit, and hey presto! Enjoy a leisurely foot soak. If that’s too indulgent for you, it’s also makes for easy leg shaving and saves water to boot.
Now, while I am quite satisfied with the private Italian bathroom experience, I have a few bones to pick with public restrooms. On two occasions (not to name any names, but it was in Assisi and Florence), I had to pay to relieve myself. And on those same two occasions, there were no toilet seats on the toilets, just the narrow, bony rim. I ask you, what in the world are they doing with that money? I humbly put forth a proposal to purchase some seats. If I have to pay to do my business I at least expect to do it in a modicum of comfort.
I have not yet braved the on-board train toilets. That might just be tempting fate too much.
I realize most of you probably want to hear all about my first couple weeks in Orvieto. The thing is, I’m not quite sure I can put my experiences down in words. Well, I could but I would not be satisfied with the result. A play-by-play account is too dry but I’m not feeling particularly philosophical either. I feel drawn to write but when the pen is put to the paper, I can’t find a starting point. These first couple of weeks have flown by but I feel very at home here. My time here started out to be hectic and tiring but things are beginning to slow and a rhythm is being established. It has been a time full of exploration and discovery, seriousness and laughter. There will undoubtedly be conflict within the group at times. I hope I am able to fully embrace it all, good and bad. I hope I am able to gain new perspective on things, to conquer the obstacles that are sure to come, to emerge as a more fulfilled and complete human being. I’m glad to have you along for the ride.
