Chapin in Italia

Pompeii

Today we woke up at 6.30 and went on a bus to Herculaneum and Pompeii. It was raining very hard and it was also extremely cold. On the way there, we stopped at an Autogrill, which had coffee and candy. We saw the ancient ruins at Herculaneum. There were baths and houses. Herculaneum was a resort for wealthier people. The ruins were very deep and we walked below the level of the modern town. Herculaneum was covered in mud, which is why it is so well preserved. Then we drove to Pompeii, where we had Neapolitan Pizza for lunch, which is not as good as the pizza in Rome. Then we saw Pompeii. While there, we saw two theatres, a brothel, more baths, as well as some houses. One of the houses was quite large and had an extensive garden. When the ancient Romans went to the baths, women and men were separated. They could go to the frigidarium, which is the cold bath, or the tepidarium, which is the warm bath, or the caldarium, which is the hot bath. Only around 10 people could fit in the caldarium pool. In both Herculaneum and Pompeii, dead bodies were preserved. In Herculaneum, the bodies were preserved in mud, while in Pompeii, modern scholars made plaster casts of the bodies. To conclude our journey through Pompeii, we stopped by the forum, or the marketplace. At 5 Pompeii closed up, and we did a little bit of shopping at street venders. We also walked to a pasta store to purchase pasta and coffee to take back to the states. We also went to a fruit store to buy blood oranges, which are the most delicious blood oranges I have ever tasted. We took a bus to an empty restaurant for dinner that caters to tourists at lunch. After dinner, we learned about the Villa of the Mysteries, which is closed for restoration. Now we are at the hotel in Naples.

Best Food/Pizza: I didn’t like the pizza at lunch, but my omelette was surprisingly good, seeing as I don’t like omelettes.

Best Gelato: At our lunch destination Hotel Vittoria we were served stracciatella gelato, which I liked.

Best Caffè: At the Autogrill, I got refrigerated, prepackaged caffe latte which was delicious. I hope I can get it back in New York, or order it from Fresh Direct.

Frase Italiana del giorno: ‘mbress, ‘mbress = “hurry, hurry” in Neapolitan

Ostia Antica

Today We . . . first got onto a private bus and drove to Museo della Civiltà Romana. At first we were startled by the museum’s austere appearance, but then we learned that it was constructed during the Fascist movement under Mussolini. Inside the building, we saw a plaster model of ancient Rome and we learned what the layout of the land looked like back then. Our tour guide then led us to another exhibit of the museum which contained reconstructed copies of statues from ancient Rome. Because of this we were able to see the statues from up close and observe the replicas of the emperor Marcus Aurelius and the Colesseum in detail. After the museum, we were led to a small bakery where we bought our lunches to be eaten at Ostia Antica. When we arrived in Ostia, we went to the top of a temple of Ceres and ate our lunches in the grass. Then, we explored more of Ostia and saw barracks of the ancient fire department, the forum baths, and a latrine. Sadly, due to the cold and the rain, we left early. On the way back, we stoppped and saw the tomb of Gaius Cestius, which is a ginormous pyramid.

Best Food/Pizza: Some place in EUR, an area of southern Rome.

Best Gelato: Old Bridge by the Vatican near the Piazza di Risorgimento. I didn’t enjoy any of the delicacies due to a full stomach, but I heard the Nocciola was to die for.

Best Caffè: I didn’t have any caffe today, but I wish I had because the coffee is amazing here.

Frase Italiana del giorno: Come stai?

Roma: Baths of Diocletian

Today We . . .awoke around 8 30 am and headed out to the Palazzo Massimo, a museum with a collection of Roman portrait sculptures, reliefs from homes, and more collected from Republican and Imperial Rome. After we left the museum, we walked over to the Baths of Diocletian and even though we only saw the baths from the outside we explored the museum for a bit and saw some diagrams of Roman baths and villas. While we were in the museum, it started raining and once we were done we speed-walked back to the hotel to change into more weather appropriate garments. As soon as we left the hotel again the sun had come out (when in Rome, if you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes). Then we set out on a sunny walk and reached our lunch location on the Via Nazionale (the name of the place will be announced at a later time). There we were offered a very nice selection of pizzas, salads (for all those who have had enough carbs to last them a lifetime), pasta dishes, and panini. We all enjoyed lunch and 3 or so caffes. After lunch, we headed out to the Colle Oppio, a beautiful garden which is part of the Esquiline hill. There we were able to see the Colossem and remnants of the Baths of Trajan and of Nero’s Golden House. After we soaked up the sun in the garden, we walked down the Via dei Giubonari which is near Campo de Fuori and had some free time to explore the various boutiques and markets. I even managed to snag a prime tourist attraction — authentic olive oil in a boot shaped bottle. Once we reconvened at the statue of Giordano Bruno in the Campo de Fuori we embarked on our journey to dinner at the Taverna Ulpia overlooking the markets and forum of Trajan and next to the column of Trajan. We ate a dinner of salad, potatoes, beef, and lasagne and topped it off with a slice of cake with a name I cannot pronounce. Once dinner was over, we walked over to the column of Trajan and stood there for a little in the freezing cold. Then we caught a bus and took it to our stop at Stazione Termini, the main train station in Rome.

Best Food/Pizza:the quattro formaggi pizza at our lunch place, on the Via Nazionale.

Best Gelato: the nocciola and coconut at It Gelatone on the Via dei Serpenti.

Best Caffè: the 2 cups I had at our lunch place.

Frase Italiana del giorno: latte scremato (skim milk)

Roma: Villa Giulia Museum

Today We . . .visited the Villa Giulia Museum in an area of Rome referred to as Flaminio. We observed a variety of Etruscan art, including pottery (like urns), jewelry, and reliefs. We also saw parts of ancient Etruscan temples. Then we strolled through the gardens of the museum and drank peach juice. Following this we took a bus to the Ara Pacis, an altar with elaborate sculpture on all sides. Next we had lovely pizza a taglio (you pay by weight) outside (we lucked out with the weather) at Fior Fiore near Piazza di Spagna and then walked around and shopped. We toured the Palazzo Magistrale, had gelato at the famous San Crispino, and toured the Pantheon. This was a relaxing afternoon. We walked around the Campus Martius and then had a delightful dinner at La Cabana near Piazza Venezia. We wound down our day at Campo di Fiori, in which we met some handsome locals and consumed another gelato.

Best Food/Pizza: Margherita Pizza

Best Gelato: San Crispino’s nocciola B

est Caffè: none. I don’t know how we went without coffee for a day.

Frase Italiana del giorno: Sogni d’oro (sweet dreams)

Roma: Forum RomanumToday We . . .trekked across Rome to the Capitoline Museum. We checked out some crazy cool statues starting off with the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius (the replica outside as well as the real deal inside). Some other highlights were the Romulus and Remus sculpture with their “she wolf” mother, and the temple of Jupiter…or the remnants of it. After visiting the Capitoline museums, we strolled about the forum. We saw the temple of the Vestal Virgins, the arch of Titus, and made some flower garlands for our luscious locks. The Colosseum was our next stop on “the fun bus”. After climbing to the top, we compared different levels of preservation of the north and south sections. The northern side was built on bedrock hence its height. Sadly, we dashed off (left wanting more) to meet up with a past Chapin teacher, Fra’ Elie de Comminges. He showed us an insider’s glance at The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta. The entrance was a convincing optical illusion that enlarges Saint Peter’s Basilica through crafty shrubbery. As one approaches the end of the viney mass, the Basilica becomes smaller. Since we ended a little early that day, we concluded by stretching out at a nearby park (Parco Savello, by Santa Sabina), and the Circus Maximus (where some of us chatted with local students). It was both an exhausting, and productive day.

Best Food/Pizza: The panino we had for lunch, which we discovered from venturing out on our own in Piazza Venezia (at Bar Cin Cin).

Best Gelato: We had favorites ranging from the chocolate to the stracciatella (vanilla with chocolate chips). A new flavor we tried today was nutella, all at Bar Brasile off Piazza Venezia on the corner of Via del Corso.

Best Caffè: Today wasn’t much of a caffè day.

Frase Italiana del giorno: Andiamo! = let’s go (a phrase we heard a lot today)

Vatican Museums: Laocoon

Day 2. we’re doing a little Caesar Brutus action… M. dictates…C types. Today, we got up and hit the bus, took the tram (trammy wammy). We went to a caffe in Trastevere called S. Callisto. We walked to a fifth century Roman church, Santa Maria in Trastevere. There was a funeral in it when we arrived…kinda qwerd (awkward, ed.) …we then went to Campo Fiori and uh … saw the market’s goodies (special herbs and “orànges”) … some of us bought some goodies … while others resisted the temptàtion..we stopped for Pizzà àt Bàffeto..it wàs àMàZING..umm..um.. (remembering the day’s events, ed.) we then decided to work off those cal cals..by doing a LONGGGG pilgrimàge. (ànd i meàn miles) We went to the Vàticàn ànd sàw màny works of àrt…went to the Sistine Chapel …on our 3.5! hours. So we decided to have an eàrly din din. Then we hàd some quàlity times.

xoxo

Best Food/Pizza: 4 Formaggi (4 cheese) pizza at the new Baffetto near Campo dei Fiori.

Best Gelato: The chocolate gelato

Best Caffè: San Callisto (near Santa Maria in Trastevere)

Frase Italiana del giorno: Dov’è il bar piu vicino? = Where is the closest cafe?

Roma: Piazza Navona

Today We… got off our plane at 7 o‘ clock. Then we took a 40 minute bus ride to our hotel. We dropped off our bags in a room, and headed out for some Italian breakfast. We had paste and cappuccini, which were very yummy! Then we went to Santa Maria Maggiore, a very beautiful basilica. Then we had a lunch of pizza at La Strega, near Via Nazionale and the basilica. Then we headed back to the hotel to freshen up, and catch up on some beauty hours (a.k.a. 10 minutes). We then took a bus to Piazza Venezia for a walking tour. We had to walk because of the Roman marathon. But it was very nice because of the beautiful weather. We had gelato at Tre Scalini (the three steps) and caffe at Sant’ Eustachio. The caffe was really strong, but very good and the gelato was incredible. We went to the Pantheon and another basilica called Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. We went to Fontana di Trevi and threw pennies into the water, while making wishes. Hope they come true. We saw the Spanish steps and a fountain shaped like a boat. Finally, we ended our first day in Rome with a fabulous dinner at Antica Hosteria al Vantaggio, not far from Piazza di Spagna.

Best Food/Pizza: spaghetti al pomodoro

Best Gelato: hazelnut ( nocciola)

Best Caffè: macchiato

Frase Italiana del giorno: scusi = excuse me

Roma: Quirinal Hill

Stiamo ancora facendo piani per nostra visita. Partiamo fra 9 giorni.

Grazie a Sign. Schalman, abbiamo cominciato questo blog.