Ottobre has come to a close with a bang - a surprisingly eventful Halloween, fieldwork, local trips, a new apartment, good food, and some failures and victories with the Italian language.
This is a view on my favorite running route - I love coming down the hill and running under the beaming Viterbo sign.
There are good parts about fumbling over Italian - like receiving a mysterious, sweet cappuccino in a cafe when I asked for something else. And of course, hard parts still. Sometimes it feels like I'm missing half of what's going on around me—likely all of the good stuff— particularly when I'm walking around downtown or at work. My Italian is more formal (which is good for work and reading, etc.) but less so for socializing or eavesdropping (you know, for language-learning purposes, of course). It has been helpful having some international friends too - seeing their excitement in learning a new English word is invigorating. I am constantly asking Cosa significa or Come si dice (what does it mean, how do you say…) and trying to write down new words, even ones I may never use again.
some recent favorites:
cielo mozzafiato- (breathtaking sky)
ogni morte di papa - when the pope dies, which is a causal expression used for instances like “I’ll run when the pope dies” or “I'll stop procrastinating when the pope dies”
campionamento – sampling (perks of being an ecologist, learning lots of science words)
dialects of saying andiamo which means “lets go” – Some areas say 'diam' or 'giamo (jah-mo)'
deocaro- This is the Tuscia way of saying Mio Dio or dear God! Appropriate to say loudly, often, and for all contexts
dammi cinque - give me a high five
My greatest language victory to date was helping a young Spanish guy get a taxi at the train station in Viterbo. I called the company, asked for the taxi, and the taxi actually showed up (I was shocked, of course). The Spanish guy even thought that I was Italian which is perhaps the highest compliment ever. I did not correct him.
The most recent highlights have been fieldwork and Roma. Fieldwork was absurdly Italian – we drove around forever looking for a place to get an espresso before fieldwork and there were a lot of smoke breaks. We ate our lunch for an hour on the spiagga, beach. Rest assured most fieldwork won’t include beach views, but it made for a pretty special introduction. This project is a side project in the lab constructing a new forest type map for this reserve, specifically looking for pine regeneration. When we met up with the carabineri forestali (forest police, essentially), they told us the deer eat all of the regeneration – and so far this seems to be true. It was great to get out in the field and I’m hoping we get to sample at a few National Parks down south soon.
This spikey plant in the front translates to “pokes you” which is absolutely accurate
Look!! One baby tree!
Lunch views - first time seeing the Mediteranean in years
Ahhhh, and Roma. A few days before I went to Rome, I went to a café to try to make a phone call. What I thought would be a quiet time on the patio with my three-euro glass of prosecco turned into something much different. Unbeknownst to me, I was at the neighborhood bar and suddenly all of these house painters and bricklayers showed up for their nightly glass of wine with the bar owner. They spoke only Italian, and got very excited when they found out my family was originally from Naples, like several of them, and bought me some more prosecco. When I told them I was going to Rome Saturday for the day, one of the painters grabbed a newspaper off a nearby table and tore off the smallest, teeniest corner. Placing it in my hand he said, “This is how much of Rome you will see in a day.”
Of course – he was more than right. I think you could visit Rome everyday for years and barely see anything. When I was 10, I thought Rome was loud, dirty, and hot. Sixteen years later I can confirm, it is all of these things. Someone told me that there are 1,000 car accidents a day in Rome (maybe not true, but it seems low to me) and trash is everywhere - even near the gorgeous ruins. And yet – it’s hard not to be enamored with Rome, where you turn a corner and there is THE colosseum, beaming over the city so unassumingly—like it belongs here, and you, this small passerby—not so much.
I basically wandered Rome all day, taking pictures, going to markets, and dilly-dallying. It’s such a blessing to be a 2 hours train ride from here - it takes the pressure off to see things quickly. I waited in line for Forno Roscoli pizza (which did not disappoint) and met some Fulbrighters in Piazza Santa Maria, in Trastevere. I had heard this neighborhood was the most charming and I cannot wait to go back. We had aperol spritz and spuntino (snacks, usually salty ones which pair so well with a spritz) with a view of the basilica.
And speaking of stumbling. I hadn’t planned to go to the pantheon, but then you know, when in Rome. I was wandering through the streets to get there and I first saw a cello player sitting outside the pantheon before the structure itself. He was playing so beautifully with the deep cello echoing off the layered buildings. An older man was sitting close to him, deep in thought. He was sitting close enough to wonder if they knew each other, or if he was making the musician uncomfortable. A small crowd surrounded the musician, not uncommon. As the song ended, the old man held his own face in awe, pulled out a 20 euro note and put it in the cello case. As he walked back to, what I assume to be his wife and grandchild, his wife clasped his hands in hers as the old man started to cry. More memorable than the pantheon.
I was so surprised to feel like I could stay in Rome forever - despite the chaos it has a way of pulling you in. I’m headed there again to meet up with my cousin Luigi this weekend and I can’t wait.
Back in Viterbo, we celebrated halloween. I'm not a huge Halloween fan in normal times, but I felt the need to really show up this year (as an American) because my friends were very curious about it. It ended up being a lot of fun - there was a bar crawl throughout the San Pellegrino neighborhood - one of the oldest parts of the city that also has great bars. Some Italian guys that are friends of friends were singing (very well, mind you) in the streets - and I couldn't stop laughing because it felt exactly like what people think Italy is like. And normally I would say no, it's not all beautiful people singing in the streets outside restaurants at night, but this time it was. Anyway, It seems like Halloween could catch on, but not everyone’s a fan. A review from a friend about Halloween was “This is a little weird and not what I expected.”
Another small, big thing. When I was out for drinks a few times over the last few weeks, I noticed that no one was on their phone. For hours! People seemed to only pull out their phone to translate the occasional word or show a picture. I’ve also found Italians and Europeans to be very direct- not blunt per say, but they’ll really ask you a deep question quickly. At dinner in a lull of conversation a friend asked openly to the table of new acquaintances, “So who believes in God?”
Other important updates: I have yet to have a bad espresso - the cafe at the train and gas stations even have had good espresso (come?!). Viterbo is also surprisingly windy, which is an unwelcome throwback to Burlington, Vermont. The running joke between friends here is saying with exasperation whenever it rains: I THOUGHT ITALY WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SUNNY.
The espresso bar at work — my colleagues and I walk in and the barista just says “due!” and pulls two espresso shots for us.
Lastly, I moved to the apartment where I will be for the next eight months. It has been so nice to finally unpack and settle into being a resident of Viterbo.
The view from the balcony off the kitchen. The duomo in the distance is in Palazzo dei Papi.
A dopo,
Olivia
Smiling ear to ear reading both of these!