Rome via Brooklyn

513 words, 3 minutes read time

I’m trying to live like a local while in Rome these next three weeks, so being able to navigate public transportation to get to Centrale Montemartini felt so good. Obviously, I credit a lot of my street smarts to being a New Yorker, but this is still a new city, so there’s a unique sense of pride I feel being able to get around without too many problems. The bus itself was kind of nice, and something I noticed how much they prioritize elderly people, pregnant people, and people with babies in strollers. I feel like the MTA only recently started caring about things like that – I’ve only seen a handful of busses with space for people with strollers, and those spots are usually occupied by people standing in them. And sure, there’s handicap/elderly seating on buses, but there’s a real culture of respect for elders because people were practically leaping out of their seats ready to give it up to anyone who might need it more. While most New Yorkers are quick to do the same, it’s certainly not all of them.

The museum at Centrale Montemartini felt like the perfect start to our learning, even if it wasn’t our original plan. Seeing the statues of the Roman Republic against an industrialist backdrop was really fascinating as it felt like the perfect embodiment of Rome. The juxtaposition of these antique statues situated beside the giant metal mechanisms of the old factory was the perfect example of how Rome (and Italy as a whole) has effortlessly blended the ancient with the modern in their architecture and their landscape. The museum overall was really cool and fun to walk through – I particularly enjoyed seeing the Pope Pius’s train car and wish I had taken a photo.

It was nice sharing a meal on our first day – particularly when we all started sharing photos of our cats (my littlest baby, Finn, pictured above). I know it’s silly, but it gave me a sense of comfort knowing that we’ve all left our animals behind to embark on this journey together for a few weeks. As much as I love traveling and experiencing the world, arguably the worst part is leaving my baby at home for so long.

The restaurant was very good, and truly proved plate after plate that #TuttoEPolpettinabile. I didn’t try everything, but what I did try I really enjoyed. I also was glad that I could communicate relatively effectively with the waitress. My confidence in speaking Italian has grown so much more quickly than I thought it would. I think I’ve really applied my “fuck it” mentality to this and am just diving head first into the language. So far, I’ve been doing pretty well (if I do say so myself)! I’m really looking forward to seeing how much more of the language I pick up on over the next few weeks. Being here, though, has definitely inspired me to take learning Italian much more seriously and I certainly plan on pursuing it formally when we all return.

-Julia