Italia Update

Day 13

Day 13 now and Rome is coming to an end very soon... 2 more nights and I'm leaving for Toscano for another project. Today I woke up early and went into the Colosseum. It didn't feel as interesting as I thought it would be, maybe because I've seen images and movies from many different perspectives so that excitement kinda faded away. Although being in the Roman Forum and being able to see Agustus's house is something that I have been waiting for. Many people pass by Augustus's house because it's not as large and appealing compared to the house of Emperor Caesar or Nero. Some say they saw Augustu's house, but they're just looking at his garden and the entrance to his garden. Even though his garden is pretty interesting, I find that his is enjoyable to spend time in as well as looking at it from a far distance. It's the only house that's located near the edge of the hill where the view of Rome is magnificent. Went to the Forum twice so far just to visit Augustus's house again before I leave to Rome and had fun taking some images while relaxing and reading a book.

After staying in the Forum and the Colosseum for a few hours I went down the Via del Corso to do some shopping for a new shirt. Found a few for 4-5 euros, which is sweet so I don't need to spend 40 euros for a shirt from like OBJ or Martins. In the end, went out for a walk around the Circo Massimo and ended my day there.

Day 14
Work day today. Went out with my team members and continued working on the neighborhood project. Overall, went out in the morning and observed a few piazzas such as: San Cosimato, Santa Maria in Trastevere, and Piazza Trilussa. Began working my way down the south and went past Porta Portese and observed the area which held a market on Sunday. Going back to that place, the area is completely different. During the market on Sunday, the Via L. Serra was filled with people and shops opened everywhere. Now, during the weekdays it's completely empty to the point where it seems like there was never a market. Completely filled with cars instead of people. Going further down, I ended up on Ostiense. Ositense is like the complete opposite of Tratevere, where modern architect is found everywhere. There are multiple number or apartments and under the apartments are little stores. Similar to those found in Hong Kong and Japan. After wondering around for a hour or so I had lunch at a local pizza shop. After went back up north and stayed in the Piazza of Santa Maria in Trastevere. Had a short break and drank some freshly squeezed orange juice, which was d-e-l-i-c-o-u-s!!!... from that point, I ended up relaxing and continued observing people as part of research.

After observing the area roughly for 2 hours or so I went into a local book store with Karen and had a nice conversation with the bookstore owner. Talked about the neighborhood of Trastevere and telling us how it changed over the years, where it has become tourist central similar to the one in Campo de Fiori but not to the extreme. It's slowly getting there, but still sustaining themselves. After our nice conversation we head towards home where we continued to work on the project. Might consider going back to the bookstore and seeing if there are any interesting books that I can find there =]


Day 15
Last day in Roma. Woke up the morning around 8am to rush down to Trastevere for some 2-3 hour research and some interviews. Made my last stay in the Piazza of Santa Maria di Trastevere, had a nice interview with two people that worked at the same book store that me and Karen went into that interview with another guy there. Had a nice conversation with the two bookstore keepers. Talked for a while about the community and people in Trastevere, so had a nice experience about talking to people. Being able to talk to the people and having a nice experience with them is such a rewarding feeling. So sadly, had to rush back to our apartment and made our slides.

Making the presentation took around 2 hours? Talk about mad crunch time on the projects. So the presentation was a success. The coordinator loved the presentation and wanted to look into Trastevere a little more deeper for the next year students. So cheers for my team Karen, Azmina, Murray, and myself. Having the presentations done we had a short movie which was SWEET. Capturing out best moments as well as our memorable moments. Hoping to see more of these sweet videos made by Derek, Brad, and Simon. As we finished, its free time....therefore our last dinner in Roma *sniff*...went to San Lorenzo with the team and had a fabulous dinner. Dinner was around 18 euros, free wine and bread. So me liking free food and drinks I kept on drinking and eating. Eventually, I got drunk.....and some we ended up in the piazza. Saw a LOT of people, which was nice to see before leaving Roma. So being drunk and all, I puked sadly on my own shoe....that's how I ended my day in Roma. Some how ended back to the apartment, cleaned up, packed ahead of time, and went to sleep...haha...BUT on the bright side we're heading up to Dulciano the next day. Can't wait to head up to a new environment and meet some new people along the way.