The city of Rome was on holiday today. There was a huge parade and speeches by dignitaries which, unfortunately, we missed out on because we were in class. On the way to school the roads were blocked off and crowds were gathering and it was tempting to cut class...but nobody did. I figured I was letting Kim and Tabitha down but I've never cut class before and by now it's kind of late to break the mold. :)
We did get in on a military fly-by with colored plumes of smoke in the shape of the Italian flag. We saw them through openings between the buildings and it lasted all of 2 seconds. I tried to take a picture of the quickly dispersing smoke but it didn't come out well. It was just one of those times you had to live in the moment.
During our lunch break today Charis struck up a conversation with the maintenance man whose name is Xavier. He looks hispanic so I suggested she could probably practice her Spanish with him. It turns out he is from Peru and does speak Spanish. I could understand a fair amount of the conversation and Charis was able to converse well enough to get along. He has been in Rome for 13 years and likes taking vacation in Peru where the euro is strong and he can afford to have a lot of fun.
We had planned to take a tour of the President's gardens in the afternoon. One day a year the President opens up his garden for the people to enjoy and this Celebration of the Republic is that day. And in fact, the official presidential residence is only a few blocks from our apartment. We waited for quite awhile with a large queue of people but only came to find out that today they were not going to let anyone in. It has been moved to Sunday. We'll see if it works into our plans to get there on Sunday or not.
So we spent our afternoon resting in our apartment and then went out again for dinner around 7:30. I'm really embarassed to admit what I had for dinner. I just have to preface it with the disclaimer that it was totally not my idea but one of the other girls in our group really wanted to try it so we went along with it. It was McDonalds! Yeah, I know. It's really lame. But there was also a curiosity to know if it was the same as back in the States. The menu was very limited compared to back home but I got the Big Mac. It tasted pretty much the same except there was no ketchup in sight. Also, I really doubt there were onions. I was going to just eat the onions which I would normally request to be withheld but didn't want the confusion of communication. But they were either very nominal or non-existant. As I was eating it I realized that I have been eating way less meat here than I normally would back home and it really tasted good. I know I'm going to get a LOT of guff for this one, but there it is -- it happened.
On the way back to our place we encountered a traffic jam with buses and taxis and motorcycles all stopped and honking. There was a large building nearby with convenient steps to climb to see what was going on. It turns out that the police had the road blocked in order to let many entourages of diplomatic cars through. It was fun for us to watch but the people in traffic all seemed rather hot under the collar. There was a lot of shouting, some rude gestures, honking of horns and incessant police sirens. I don't know how long it had been going on before we happened upon it but we watched for a good 20 minutes. I felt like we got in on a parade after all! I'm going to share the video Sarah took if she posts it on fb.
Now the girls are playing cards, I'm off to take a bath, and then maybe a little homework before going to bed.
Wish I could have an espresso with you in Rome!
ReplyDeleteWe went to McDonald's in France too, Naomi, for the same reasons. And yes, it was the same there too! So funny. I think it's a little more different in Japan, but basically, it's the same world-wide, I guess. Hmmm, I wonder about Saudi Arabia. I can ask my friends. Now, just don't go there again!!
ReplyDeleteOh, I forgot: Allons enfants de la partrie, le jour de gloir est arrive. . . . . Marchon, marchon! Hmm, that's almost all I remember of the French National Anthem, but I really like the tune and singing the song. So, I thought your blog needed it today. . .er, yesterday. :-)
ReplyDeleteKim, me too!! That's the only thing missing...coffee with good friends.
ReplyDeleteKay, thanks for the understanding comments. :)
Hey, no unnecessary guilt for eating at McD's!! I confess to eating a salad or wrap from there every now and then! Back in the 70's, we visited one in Stockholm, but I don't remember anything about what we ate...perhaps because it was located next to a billboard that had a topless woman on it, and we were kind of blown away by that!! :) We were living in Germany at the time and had heard that there was a McD's in Munich, but never did go out of our way to check it out. McD's hadn't reached to the uttermost parts of the earth yet!
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