andiamo a roma

all photos taken with fujifilm x30

I acknowledge that my Vienna post was a little photo heavy, so I'm just going to split Rome up. 
Like a gladiator. (I need to stop watching Scandal. I. Need. To. Stop. (I can't))

The first thing I noticed about Rome, as we were landing (this morning), was the massive Roman aqueduct leftover that was sitting in someones  field. It had a chicken on it. I thought I was hallucinating due to having woken up at 2am in order to catch a taxi. (To get to a bus, to get to a plane, to make it to another bus.) But no, this is just how things are in a city that is literally as old as dirt. 

Since arriving, I have forced my second semester Italian on nearly every person I've spoken to. Mainly to order food. I've been here less than 24 hours and already eaten two kinds of pasta, two kinds of coffee, two kinds of gelato, and a very interesting presentation of chestnuts. I have also had what Rick Steves would refer to as "a spot of bother". I call it "universal balance". The price I paid for getting an entire row of seats to myself on the plane. The Trevi Fountain was not only drained, but half of it was gone, off for "archival reconstruction", and the Spanish Steps were closed for some mysterious reason. To top it all off, my gelato dripped down my arm and into my sweater.

Here is the secret to not being bothered by any of it at all: coffee. I used to make fun of the Warwick Bros. for their coffee obsession, but mine is spinning away. Latest discovery is a Viennese Cappuchino, otherwise known as "Leslie Knope Makes Coffee". It's basically just whipped cream with a little bit of espresso and chocolate at the bottom. Heavenly.

I am learning a lot of things on this trip, like how to not get upcharged on your coffee (drink it at the bar, do not sit down) and how to pack a weeks worth of outfits into a suitcase and have it weigh under 20lbs. (this was hard) But another thing I am learning, (ironically, while being 6k miles away from them), is what majestical people I am surrounded by at home. My friends are all incredibly talented and interesting individuals, and our group chats are legendary. Today, however, three gold star stickers are owed to Sallie. She's on the front lines of my entire life and handles it like an expert (she's one of the very few). She would also like it stated that she sincerely enjoys stalking your guys' instagrams, so please keep commenting on mine so she can do it.

Also, I need it to be noted that I am staying in a hotel that involves taking a 19th century elevator to the sixth floor. I am pretty sure it is haunted, but because this is not a Goosebumps novel, I will not investigate. I will just enjoy its endless mirrors and faint smell of spaghetti.

x J



follow A Bent Piece Of Wire on twitter|facebook|bloglovin