The reality of it all

When people find out that I am living in Rome I think their first reaction is that of jealousy, perhaps I too would feel that way if I wasn't privy to the actual goings on of life in Rome. I will tell you the story of my day, and it is only 1:45pm, not to receive sympathy, but more so people out there have a realistic idea what life is like in Rome for a non-Italian speaking person.

I venture off to the post office which is about a 20 minute walk away, not too far, good thing I remember to pack my Italian-English dictionary. When I arrive I go to the ticket dispenser to take the correct ticket for my needs. Hmmmm, everything is in Italian, first obstacle, nothing looks familiar, which button do I press to mail a parcel? Ok, let's go with E. I take my seat and wait for the numbers to eventually reach the one I have in my hand. While I wait I begin to plan our the words I will use to explain to the lady that I need to buy two envelopes and I would like to mail two parcels. The armed guard has been staring at me since I arrived, I think he suspects that I have a bomb on me, perhaps his assumption is based on my apparent stress level which is higher than other people around me.

I notice that the E cue does not appear to be moving as fast as the other numbers. I also (after 20 minutes) notice that the people around me who have parcels to mail are all holding letter P. I go back to the machine and request a ticket for the P line. Once again I take my seat. In the meantime I get to listen to all the disgruntled customers who yell back and forth about things they are upset about, usually to do with their numbers. Or maybe they are talking about the weather, really, I have no idea.

Finally my number is called and I timidly go up to the counter, already feeling stupid because I clearly have a poor grasp of the Italian language as I stumble my way through the Sono Canadese, non parlo Italiano sentence. The lady tells me that I cannot buy envelopes at the post office, I must go to the Tabacci (a small convenience store that sells the most random of things). So of course I cannot buy an envelope at a post office, I mean really, how dumb was I to think that this would clearly be a more efficient option.....grrrr.... out I go.

I arrive at the Tabacci and am greeted by two very sweet elderly people who work there, with my poor grasp on Italian I explain that I need a busta and with hand gestures I try to describe the plastic bubbles lining the envelope. They smile and have a very good sense of humor about it all. They ask where I am from. I say Canada, and try to explain how hard it is to live in Rome and not speak Italian, I think they understood that.

Back to the Post office I go, this time taking the correct P ticket and am called up to the desk right away. I am not sure about you but when I know that the person I am speaking to does not understand English I generally choose small, simple words and try to speak slowly. Not here. fdlkjeroijdfksfeja the woman says to me. I keep pointing to the envelopes "vorrei impostare" I say. Finally I realize that she is telling me that she cannot insure my parcels, oh man, I don't even care at this point, so no ce problema!

After my post ordeal and my nervousness of being near an armed guard with spare bullets around his waist who keeps staring at me suspiciously I was very happy to get the heck out of there. I try to get on the Metro to go to my home branch and do some banking, the Metro is closed, of course it is. So instead I go to the branch at the bottom of my hill, I was there before and was told I couldn't do banking there. My I have an account so far away from my house is a mystery to me, but beggars can't be choosers. The man at the wicket recognizes me instantly, he smiles but I know he is probably not happy to see me, he speaks no English and last time I saw hi I left the bank with tears in my eyes. As it turns out I cannot do anything here yet again and despite bringing my passport, all my banking information from when I opened my account and my Italian dictionary I am once again left with tears in my eyes. Everything is so difficult.

I left the bank with nothing accomplished yet again, and had the pleasure of walking home in the pouring rain, very suiting to my day. So there you have it, don't envy me, don't cry for me, just be happy for the life that you lead, all of life's adventures come with struggles as well. And as for me, I really need to learn more Italian and fast.

And be nice to people who don't speak the local language, it might just be you one day......

A Canadian in Italy enjoying American Thanksgiving!

I have the fortune of saying that I celebrated my very first American Thanksgiving last night due to the wonderful festive spirit of my American room mate Jill. This is such a big holiday for the American people so Jill spent most of the week preparing so that on the special day she and her closest friends could feast on the perfect meal and give thanks for all of the fortune we have in our lives.

Earlier in the week Jill went to the market to pre-order her turkey. When she arrived to pick it up the man
announced that all he had was a EIGHT KILO turkey! Ok, no problem, let's invite more people!

Oh my goodness, the food was amazing, a literally had to go change out of my dress
and into something more comfortable. I think I am still full.

A dash of squash, add a lovely group of ladies and some fine Italian wine, the day was perfect

Good thing we took this picture before eating, I think we all had food babies by the end of the meal!


Great job Jill, it was a night to remember!

Back to Rome

As I flew back into Rome I couldn't help but notice two very amazing things:

Part One: Holy moses that is a whole heck of a lot of pollution spewing out of the Tiber River and into the sea, and part B of this, oh my goodness, this is the same beach that people swim at!!!!

Eek!!!!

Part Two: I noticed a rainbow from out of our bus window that was taking us from the airport to Termini. I turned to Natalie and started saying, woah, a double rainbow man, it's a double rainbow. When I looked again I realized IT ACTUALLY WAS A DOUBLE RAINBOW!!!!

Don't get the joke? I suggest you watch this video....

It still makes me laugh out loud, this guy is crazy!

North Africa here I come!

Anyone who knows me knows that I have am in a major love affair with the African continent so I couldn't pass up the chance to visit Marrakech, Morocco when I recently found a flight so cheap that it hurt my soul not to book it. One of the things I like about Rome is that it is so well connected to the rest of the world so in just a few short hours I was putting my feet on North African soil. Morocco will be my 8th Africa country visited so I was really excited to see how it differs from it's sub-Saharan cousins to the south. As we (I was joined by my wonderful classmate Natalie) began our descent into the city I was so excited to see that in every direction there were date and olive trees!

The city is really incredible, tiny alleys, very densely populated and full of life!

We've arrived!

Our hostel was down a pretty little alley

Above the alley was an ancient looking house

One of the things that really attracts me to Morocco is that it is a Muslim country.

I really enjoy the culture, including the prayer that is broadcast all over the city

Djemaa el Fna market square

One of the many stalls selling fresh dates, figs and nits

The Koutoubia Mosque, built in the 12th century

Menara Gardens, built in 1866 as the residence of the king

The basin of water behind me was created to provide irrigation to the surrounding
olive and fig trees. It was also used to teach soldiers how to swim.

The ceilings inside the building were breath taking, beautifully carved and painted,
dad really would have liked it.

One of my best memories happened the day I said to the hostel staff "What could we do today that would be really fun and not tourist?" Hiba said, "Why don't you come to my house!" Four of us joined Hiba that day, we took an hour long bus ride out of Marrakech. It was amazing to see the country side. It was also obvious by everyone's reactions that tourists never appear on the bus, everyone was staring and giggling at us.

We then flagged down a local taxi, aka a horse and wagon, and drove another 45 minutes out of town.

It was my first time taking a horse and wagon and I have to say it is a nice way to travel,
slow and steady, easy to see everything!

The traffic

My Xhosa grandfather would feel right at home here with all these donkeys!

When Hiba invited us to her house I didn't realize that her house was 800 years old!!! I thought she
was joking but her sister confirmed it. That is 3 times the age of my country!! Her family is
Berber who are thought to be the original people of Morocco.

Her house is made from the Earth, I was really impressed with the construction. The toilet is outside,
it is on the right in this picture, there was no door, I guess one needs to have good hearing

Hiba's mother was busy cooking dinner, they have two kitchens, this one and a more modern one with a fridge.

Hiba's Aunt came over to do Henna for us, it was so lovely

Good luck and good fortune

The ladies brought out two huge plates of vegetable couscous for us, and some spoons for us tourists.
We were joined by Hiba's three brothers, sister and mother. Her father was working in the city.

100% fresh produce

Then after we were stuffed full they brought out a plate of hand made pastries!

Mint tea is the thing to drink in Morocco, it is so tasty.


After a long day of receiving incredible hospitality from our Berber friends it was time to head home. Hiba called her friend with the horse and wagon and we ventured back to Marrakech. The next morning we headed to the market, a color labyrinth of maze-like streets, everywhere you look are things that are amazing, beautiful and interesting.

We met another family who treated us with kind Berber hospitality. As we entered this man's shop
we began chatting and before we knew it he had made a fresh pot of mint tea for us to enjoy. His son
joined us also.

The glasses were very hot so he served the glasses to us inside of little baby shoes ha ha

I bought several scarves from him and he showed me how to tie them Berber style.
I really like this style because the mouth covering can be put up or taken down very quickly.
It is really functional when there is a sand storm to protect yourself from the sand. It is also a nice
feature when you are around a lot of car spewing leaded fuel....

The man's son took us for a tour of the behind the scenes areas. My favorite was the dyer's market where
people hand dye sheep's wool.

The dye is all natural and they use many beautiful colors

Pretty wool balls

So many beautiful shoes and every one of them leather :( I guess you don't go to Morocco
to buy synthetic leather!

Our new friend, and my new German friend Romina

Speaking of wonderful people. This boy was the best salesman I have ever met in my life. I was
standing outside of his shop when he came outside to say hello. He said "you come with me and I will show you things". He took me by the hand and brought me to a wall of jars. "This one is for washing hair, and this one is for nice cooking, and this one is for upset stomach and this one....." He said he started working in the shop when he was only 3 years old, but he is in school too. He was so knowledgeable and I have to say it is pretty hard not to buy from him, he is so cute.

The city is surrounded by a wall, this is one of the pillars.

As our plane took off I was feeling so impressed with my time in Marrakech, I really loved it
and I cannot wait to go back. I was also really amazed by the thick cloud of smog over the city,
I guess that explains my scratcy throat. Time to switch to unleaded fuel Morocco!
See you soon.

One last video to make you smile. I took this while I walked through the main square.

As you can see from the end it was not appreciated. People want to be paid

if they appear on camera so I was quick to shut it off when my cover was blown ha ha.

Did anyone notice those cats?

One of the best things about Rome is when you have the opportunity to wander around and risk getting lost in one of the greatest cities in the world. It is really quite spectacular. A small group of us played tourist recently and we started our journey in the Jewish ghetto.

Hanging out in ancient Rome

Ladies, you know how we love our sexy firefighters calendar?
Well I present to you the jewish version

Walk, walk, walk, oh look an ancient building, walk walk walk

This is cat heaven, amongst the ancient city are a thousand well fed cats.
They live here and the locals provide them with all the food they could need!