Rome via Brooklyn

I mentioned some of the fashion I saw in a little portion of day one. I think something that immediately stood out to me was the scent of the air. There are many trees that seem to be at peace or just working very well at purifying the air. I am not used to such sweet-smelling plants as I go for a walk unless I am in a park, but here I can just walk up the street and everything smells great. From the airport, I did notice pine trees; concepts of personal space were interesting but not too disturbing. I think there seems to be a certain calmness to Roman culture, where I feel as though a lot of locals are outside to take their time smelling the air, moving their bodies, shopping around, and just enjoying the day. I also noticed that young women wear really long nails sometimes. I saw it a few times, but I don’t have any pictures.

I noticed that there aren’t too many unhealthy snacking options, but there is a lot of olive oil, wines, and it seems so elegant and as if romans care a lot about their health. Even beef patties are sort of mostly vegan in certain stores. I got a faint recollection of the MTA on some streets that just smelled like pee. I wasn’t expecting it, but it felt like home in a sad, strange way.

Chapter 5 was tough to read because of this quote. “Shopping in Italy is an interactive social contract. When entering a small local negozio, it is standard practice to greet the shopkeeper with a warm ‘Buongiorno’ or ‘Buonasera.’ To ignore them and walk straight to the shelves is considered cold and unrefined.” I think something I really struggled with is being confident while observing the confidence of locals. I am uncomfortable being an outsider, but I just want to embrace it and have fun. I think I’ve been saying Grazie the American way, even though what I’ve been watching myself do is whisper when I enter the store because I feel like there is a spotlight over me. I’m committed to not doing that these next couple of days because I always greet warmly and brightly in New York, even if I don’t get a response back. So being in a new space is uncomfortable, but it’s not impossible, and I’m grateful for this observation and experience for shining a light here.  I can’t wait to try a coffee bar this weekend and visit some more markets. 

more good photos coming as i settle into picture taking