Once Upon Another Time....

A year on the Mediterranean

A walk to remember - 150 stairs for 365 days

Home sweet home Viale delle mura Gianicolense

The towers of Bologna

Gran Sasso, Abruzzo

Attending the Last Supper

Atop St. Peter's
San Pietro, Vatican City

The nasoni of Rome

The view from the Gianicolo, Monteverde
Civita di Bagnoreggio, Umbria

The Palio, Siena

Wine casks of Montepulciano

Wine tasting in Montalcino

The GD David

The Italian male

Cinque Terre

Riomaggiore, Cinque Terre

Wine tasting in the Piemonte

The keyhole

The Tiber

Vittorio Emanuele
Porto San Sebastiano, Monte Argentario

Talamone, Tuscany

Villas of Lago di Como

Bellagio, Lago di Como

Palermo, Sicily
Panarea, Isola Eolie

Italian fashion

Ponza

Aventine Hill

The Forum

Fontana di Trevi

Spanish Steps

The Pantheon

The Colosseum

Apologies for my long absence from bloggerville - I had to abruptly leave Italy in the middle of December when I found out I was forced to fly back to the U.S. on the last day of my contract (Dec 14th). In the craziness of FAO and life as a consultant, I had no idea when I left if I would be returning. So I had to give up my precious apartment, pack up all my things, and take a giant leap into the unknown with no home, no job, and no idea of what would come - and all in time for the holidays.

A few extra special Christmas gifts were amidst all this madness......By forcing me home on the 14th (with paid airfare) I was able to surprise my best friend Erica for her 30th birthday. I was also able to spend a month in the U.S. visiting family and friends, eat so much American food that I was longing for Italy again, and go on 4 job interviews to see if I could stay. In my month in the states I was in five cities, went from 75 and sunny on the beach to sun and wind in the mountains to frigid city streets and snow. I managed to see every one of my family members, attend two birthday celebrations, dress like a flapper, get asked on a date, and go to Anthropologie four separate times.

I received my contract renewal on Christmas Eve - but only for two months. So back into the unknown. This return to my life abroad was probably the hardest yet, maybe because I was home for so long and really got accustomed to being with people I love, or maybe it was my unlimited access to hot sauce, sushi, mexican food, and condiments that I didn't want to leave.

As you may imagine it's hard to find someone to give you a lease for just two months, but I had thought I found a solution in an apt I found before I left in December. Unfortunately, that fell through three days before I was returning, so I scrambled and found a vacation rental. And somehow in the spirit of giving - another gift - a super cute, cosy, apartment in the most coveted neighborhood in Rome for half of what I was paying before. My new commute to works includes having to shove past the Colosseum which is directly in my path. When I landed back in Italy it sort of felt like I never left - especially when I was greeted with the most Italian of welcomes home - a taxi strike and no way from the airport. Oh Italy - I missed you

In honor of my return and my nearly one year (interrupted) anniversary here, I've decided to regale you with a two part bonus blog - one part year end report, and one part that you've all been waiting for - an NZed/Italy match up. So here's part one, and stay tuned for part two coming soon......

Trust me that I was the last person to think when I left the States two years ago, that there was going to be a second chapter in this fairy tale. And while it has surely been a fairy tale, it hasn't always been a fantasy......

Once upon a time, the UN hunted me down in NZed and gave me a ring (not the wedding variety, the phone variety) and asked if I'd like to move to Rome, the only thing was that this time I'd have to work. They could tell I wasn't quite convinced to leave the splendor of NZed behind, so they promised no taxes, all the vacation time I wanted (unpaid), diplomatic immunity (except for the bus), and at least a one way flight back to the U.S. if I still wasn't convinced. And while it hasn't always been a fantasy, it has always always been a dream come true.....

It took awhile to battle the Italy of my dreams (and former vacation) while trying to actually live in Italy. Italy can be amazingly beautiful and glamorous and delicious, and it can also be brutal, frustrating, and illogical. So in the tradition of the great Roman conquerors, here's a tally of who came out on top and where:

Street domination: WINNER - ME: Now granted when I arrived I had already had some practice with the need to dominate the streets in Italy from my brief visit a few years ago. Using my legs as my primary means of transportation has resulted in not only a need to dominate the streets, but has also provided me many occasions to lose. I am proud to say that I have walked to work (and most other locations in this city) everyday of my year here, and not once been hit by a car or stepped in dog poop = total domination. And as I instructed my many visitors, it is all about confidence and caution

Carbs: WINNER - Italy: Coming here I was still of the American mind that carbs are bad and will definitely make you fat. I will tell you that either it's our carbs or it's a lie, or maybe see street domination above. The fact is, eating pasta, pizza, and paninis everyday won't make you fat, as long as you're doing it in Italy

Males: WINNER - Me: Again, coming here I was set to think that men would be aggressive and annoying, and they're not, they're hilarious. As long as you're okay with being stared up and down, having all your things paid for, and never letting a man walk before you through a door, then Italian men are harmless, generous, and caretaking.

La Bella Lingua: WINNER: Italy - Everyone, even me, thought it would be easy to learn Italian given my knowledge of Spanish and French, and yet still after 11 months I struggle. Now maybe it's cause I never took a real class, live alone, work in English, don't have an Italian boyfriend - but it still frustrates me. And now, in Italy's utter glory, I can't speak Spanish or French well either because I intersperse Italian words. The Tower of Babel is here and now

Exercise: WINNER: Draw - I thought that I had ingrained exercise enough into my daily routine and psyche in NZed to make it last wherever I went, but Italy makes it hard. The combo of cobblestone, lack of a car to get 'outside', danger (roads, muggers, see cobblestone again), and the lack of an exercise culture have all combined to thwart me or make me thwart myself. Thank god for my means of transport in my legs or Italy would have really won

History: WINNER: Italy - I somehow thought just by living in Rome that I would immediately become a history buff. Any of you that came to visit soon found out I was making up a bit of my own history with my own Libby Beall's tour of Rome. The fact is, no matter how hard I try to memorize/learn it all, I'm battling over 2,000 years, so I'll happily cede this one

Patience: WINNER: Draw - Each day that I think that I've won and that Italy can't get to me/surprise me anymore with its snafus and hassles, I am as my Dad says "put at the end of a long line". And while I won't say I've won this one, Italy I thank you for continuing to test me and teach me there is ever more patience to learn

Acceptance: WINNER: Me - And while I may not have won on the patience front, I have accepted Italy for the duality that it is, which has made not only life much easier for me here, but also unleashed an ability to see more of its hidden charm. However, I'm not sure Italy has accepted me and my undid hair and lack of a puffy shiny jacket

Living Alone: WINNER: Me - I'm not sure why I thought living alone for the first time in my whole life in a country without customer service was a good idea, but it has certainly taught me that I can do it and thrive. I have to thank my charming landlord Pietro for taking it pretty easy on me

Italy by the numbers:

-I somehow managed to top my NZed year with 15 visitors

-Not pictured here the 8 other countries visited (yes, I'm including Vatican City)

-5 Italian islands visited

-200+ gelatos eaten

-500+kgs of prosciutto devoured

-1000+litres of wine imbibed

-50+ churches toured

-Countless more things to see and do!!!!!!

*I will give you superlatives only when I'm really leaving

And now that I'm back for at least a little while, I better get after it. Stay tuned as I try to check off all those spots I didn't get to and WIN at all those things I failed at, to truly conquer Italy

Once again, I could not have survived, or even lived, this second chapter of this fairy tale without the support (from near or far) from all of you. Thank you again for taking this truly ridiculous journey with me - I couldn't do it without you.

Una giornata di ringrazimiento

The 22lb turkey that I carried home

on the bus in my backpack, threatening to take people

down who bumped into me. Forget mace, I might

have found my new self-defense aid

That face says "You all don't have any idea

that I have no idea how to cut into this thing"

and then the destruction ensued

On the menu, scalloped sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts

with bacon, mashed potatoes, fennel, apple sausage stuffing,

pumpkin soup, pomegrante, parmesan, arugula salad....

My 16 non-American guests seemed excited....

To finish it off, pumpkin cheesecake, kentucky

derby pie (not pictured) and a pumpkin pie made

by a colleague who really wanted to understand

and find Crisco in Rome

Like a lot (most) of my grand ideas, they seem really easy and fun in my head while I'm concocting them. You may remember - running 35k on no training with a backpack with a five course meal inside? or when I decided to buy an SUV so I could sleep in it? start a jewelry company that makes people's ears bleed? or countless others. Well in thinking about Thanksgiving, here's a bit of went through my head - "1) I mean I owe it to my colleagues and friends as the token American to give them a Thanksgiving; 2) I should invite everyone (including the IT people) since THAT is the spirit of thanksgiving; 3) I should really take more advantage of having a big apartment/garden and have people over more often before I leave; 4) I love cooking, it will be fun!" So what I didn't think about was 1) I don't own a car and feeding 16 people sort of requires the transport of a lot of food into my kitchen for me to transform it into Thanksgiving; 2) I don't even know/understand what the breast side of the turkey is; 3) my kitchen is smaller than my bathroom and my oven doesn't exactly have a temperature, so much in that it has a mind of its own where I just light it with a lighter; 4) finding Thanksgiving ingredients (cranberry sauce (forget cranberries); marshmallows, pecans, etc) in Italy is like finding an Italian without a puffy jacket.

When I shared these thoughts and non-thoughts with my Mom, she said, "No, Elizabeth, what are you thinking?, you can't do that, just make it a pot-luck". To which I said, "MOM ITS THANKSGIVING, I have to deliver America to these people, I can't ask them to bring America to me". And if my Mom had thought back to my high school years, she would have realized that her words ("you can't do that") were all the motivation I needed to make sure that I did. Here's a few of the highlights of my Italian day of giving Thanks:

-Transport: I used my trusty back and legs to get the turkey home, and quickly realized I was going to need to call in reinforcements for the 10lbs of potatoes, bottles of wine, etc. etc. So I called my new best friend, the Smart Car parked at Termini; hiked over to the huge/cheap weekend market and piled my backpack and arms with all the veggies and fruits I would need and hiked back, worth every penny and I've discovered I love driving in Rome mostly cause there are no rules

-Labour: As I mentioned, my kitchen is far from equipped, but I managed to mash 5lbs of potatoes with a fork; chop a 1lb of nuts by hand; roast a pumpkin to then mash up for soup, and brine a turkey in a garbage bag.

-Ingredients: Since some ingredients are just impossible to find, I had to get creative and make my pumpkin cheesecake crust out of a random cookie here that is *sort of* like a graham cracker, had to make a pie with hazlenuts instead of pecans, only make all butter crusts, and more. But luckily, I did manage to find cranberry sauce and marshmallows at a little store in Trastevere that sells a few random American goods including, yes it's true, occasionally Cheezits

-The Spirit of Thanksgiving: Since none of my guests had ever celebrated Thanksgiving (or at least not with a real American), and many of them said how they were excited "from the movies", I not only felt a lot of pressure but also contemplated playing some tricks on them and just telling them that certain things were a tradition. In the end, when I told them that we all go around and say what we're thankful for, they actually thought I was joking, and then Bossy Beall came out and I made everyone go around and say something

-Fails: So you might have noticed that I'm quite proud of myself for pulling this off, however there were a few fails of the day, 1) I totally forgot about making the gravy I was so excited to just get the turkey out of the oven, but luckily I had anticipated this blunder and once I realized, I quickly whipped up a package that I had purchased *just in case* and luckily no one's had real gravy anyway; 2) after everyone departed and I finished patting myself on the back, I tackled the dishes and then passed out. I awoke the next morning to my bathtub full of Thanksgiving sink gook, with no option but to shower ankle deep in it. So I guess Italian pipes can't handle the butter/grease/etc. that we pour into our bodies for Tgiving

And in sum, I'm so thankful to have had the opportunity to live a year in Italy, and for all of you who have kept me as a constant part of your lives no matter the distance. Being far away during the holidays makes me even more appreciative of all of you back home, and for this crazy adventure.

I can't think of a better way to round this post off than with one of my favorite non-native English speaker mistakes and just say - THANKS A LOT*

*non-native speakers are used to saying Thanks a million in their language (spanish, french, italian), and somehow when they want to say this in English they end up with "thanks a lot" instead of many thanks or something similar. It never fails to crack me up