Rome via Brooklyn

412 words, 2 minutes read time.

Walking through the ruins of an ancient city, standing behind what was once a bar, and gazing down on the tile which covered the floor of a bath has a way of helping one visualize what their life might have looked like years ago. Compared to the ruins of Rome, I can imagine a life in ancient Ostia much more clearly, most likely because of our ability to physically walk through the actual ruins, but also because of how “realistic” it is. While we would all love to have lived as wealthy and rich people in the past, it’s much more likely what we would have been living as more average, modest, or even poor people of the time. Getting to see a life that feels much more attainable than that of an emperor was very cool and gave a nuanced perspective of ancient life. While I don’t think I can ever properly imagine a life so far in the past, I would definitely want to fit into the life of a more middle class citizen.

Going to the beach after the ruins was my absolute favorite part of the day, especially since I haven’t been to the beach in some time. I took unfortunately few pictures of the beach, but getting to unwind in the water (not going out too far since I don’t know how to swim 😦 I am learning this summer though!!), having a few drinks on the beach, and chatting about anything and everything with my friends made Friday one of the highlights of the trip for me. The beach has always been a place where I can relax, unwind, and empty my mind as I look out on the wonder of nature which is the ocean.

The ocean not only calms me, but makes me extremely tired, and that fatigue really hit me on the train and bus ride back to the apartment. Having made heat-of-the-moment dinner plans and a desire to keep to my word (a desire I don’t usually have when I’m exhausted), most of my housemates and I, along with Joseph, braved our sleepiness and made our way out of our apartments to grab some dinner and talk about whatever came to our minds. With live music accompanying our tired conversations, I am still very grateful we all somehow made it out our apartments.

Khadija Fall ❤