Centro Rome

... continues as to who won.

Rome is an amusing background for pop culture, a role it has played for 25 centuries. Spectacles in the Colloseum included wild animals and exotic, though unwilling, people from all parts of Europe and Africa. Mussolini made culture a key part of his political agenda, striking deals to save treasures even as he fled for his life at the end of the war. Berlusconi has managed to balance the most stable ...

... so bitterly about the other place, and then flocked to a “genuine” place where they ordered French fries. French fries. French fries! This was wonderfully entertaining to them. They seem to like weird parts of our culture-one brother was eager to express his admiration of Christina Aguilera and Beyonce to us. Gerri had to translate almost everything between us and the other 7 Italians. Someone inquired about the “crisis” in America. This was the second ...

... the surrounding area were quite busy, a lot of people were sitting on the steps eating lunch or just watching life go by. From the Spanish Steps we went to a church called Santa Maria Della Concezione Dei Cappuccini to visit the Capuchin Monks Crypt underneathe. The Capuchin Crypt is a set of tiny chapels decocrated with the bones of over 4000 Capuchin Monks who died between 1528 and 1870. It was pretty crazy down there - everything was made from their bones ...

... me, we drank a lot of caffe in Rome....) It's located just by the Pantheon. The next day, we perused around Ancient Rome and Palatine Hill, and marveled at the feats of architecture and engineering. We had lunch at a small sandwich shop in Campo di Fiore, and we spent time inside the Colosseum. Dinner was at Il Convivio, an upscale restaurant near the banks of the Tiber, right by Piazza Navone. The service was impeccable and the food was excellent ...

Tryouts were Mon, Jan 21, night! Yay! I had a great showing, I played outside right midfielder. This position requires much running for offense and defense at both ends of the field. Also speed is important and defensive tackles are a must. I soundly accomplished each of these. I even facilitated the role of captain for my team. The coach, who only speaks Italian and prefers to be called 'Mister', stopped the game twice to introduce himself (both times), then made me point my name ...

... Bar. The service was fine and the food OK, but we were both too tired to fully enjoy it. After dinner, we walked up Via Sistina to the Spanish Steps. As we arrived about 9:30, "blanket vendors" started to appear. They spread blankets on the terraces and arranged their goods. First, there were leather purses, then other tourist items. I ...

... the street vendors, street performers, tourists and very fashionable Italians is a nice way to spend the afternoon. For New Year's Eve, we had read that Piazza Popolo sometimes has free concerts and is a great place to watch the fireworks. Little did we know that the fireworks weren't quite the pretty ones that light up the night sky. We got there around 9ish to check it out before looking for a quick meal nearby. The three ambulances parked around the ...

... of children would be hard to miss. In fact, no one has seemed very inclined to try and steal anything, possibly because we actually pay attention to the whereabouts of our money. 2. Myth: Europeans don't believe in deoderant. Reality: I have no insight into their true feelings on the matter, but many crowded subway rides later, I can avow that personal hygiene seems fine. 3. Myth: Americans are the worst ...

... tourists. Why are the Spanish Steps in Italy? I have no clue, and after seeing them I do not know why they are a popular tourist attraction. Close by there was a very large park with kids riding all kinds of crazy bikes - two person, four person, more - and they were all running a muck. The park overlooks the square where the police were hosting the 153rd anniversary - obviously a weekend affair. Sunday May 15, 2005 Day three in Rome include a few disappointing ...

... hotel is really a decent, clean place. In fact maybe a little better than decent. I got up to my room and was incredibly happy with the whole color scheme which I decided was a good sign. Then to the shower--oh gosh, it was the best and I would have taken two because it was so humid but it was close to 6pm and places would begin to close soon. I headed in search of San Pietro dei Vincoli. It was cool to walk away from the hotel and know that ...