My Piece of the Internet

Find me on Dreamwidth

2025-02-14T15:03:19Z

If you're still around here on livejournal or you're exploring your old friends list and wondering where they've all gone (ask me how I know about that feeling...) I'm still around! *waves* I'm blogging on Dreamwidth now and my blog is https://florianschild.dreamwidth.org/. Come on over and hang out with me; it's lovely and fun!

My Experience Reading A Song of Ice and Fire

2013-06-19T02:25:55Z

Take any given character. We go with Arya as an example:

Book 1: “Wow, Arya is cool. I can’t wait to see her turn into a bad ass woman warrior…. aww shit, her dad is dead. That sucks.”

Book 2: “Ok, well at least Arya is on her way to the Wall. She can see her brother, Jon! … oh, never mind.”

Book 3: “Well hey, she’s in the Riverlands! That’s where Robb and Catelyn are! She’ll meet up with them and it will be great! …oh god…”

Book 3.5: “Ookaaay. Well. At least Arya is with the Hound. She’ll see that he’s actually a good guy and they’ll become friends. He’ll help her take revenge on all the people who wronged her family. …or she’ll just leave him to die under a tree. Fuck.

Book 4: “Well, now she’s finally liberated herself from everyone who has had power over her throughout the books. I’m sure we’ll see her find her way home now… or she’ll just leave the goddamn continent and hand her autonomy over to some total stranger.”

Book 5: “Maybe this isn’t so bad. Arya’s learning how to be an assassin. That’s pretty nea-CLIFFHANGER!

Once, just once, I want one of these huge cathartic moments that are set up to actually occur.

Bonus: You can try substituting in almost any character, allowing for differences in what book they are introduced and, of course, when they inevitably die. It’s fun. It’s like a game. A really frustrating game.

Covering My Butt

2013-03-12T01:28:31Z

Occasionally, in my fanfiction, I like to include homages to other media that I have a fannish love for. Mostly this manifests as turn-of-phrase being borrowed from other works and incorporated into my fics. I like to do this for three main reasons: 1.) It makes me smile when I go back and reread my work and see my "inside jokes", 2.) If anyone reading my fic happens to like the same things that I do, they may also appreciate these little nods, 3.) There are a lot of quotation fragments rolling around in my brain and, like a song that is stuck in your head, I find it cathartic to release them. I do this in conversation a lot too, but luckily you don't generally have to disclaim what you say in casual conversation.

Now, I know that a similar practice has gotten some other fanfiction authors into heaps of trouble. Not to put myself on the same level as any BNFs, but I want anyone reading my fic to know that I am aware of the history here. That being said, I wouldn't want anyone to think that my use of quotation fragments is on par with blatantly stealing entire concepts, conversations, and paragraphs of prose.

In the list below, I've cataloged every instance in which I've knowingly incorporated a quotation fragment from an uncredited source into my fanfiction. I don't credit them in each individual disclaimer, because I want people who read the works to be able to find them on their own. I'm listing them individually here, however, and I will link back to this post in my general disclaimer whenever possible.

Fic Title: Making Plans for the Future Link.
Line: No teenager from the back of beyond could possibly have any notion of what it was like in the arena.
Source: The phrase "back of beyond" is ripped from the musical Evita. In the song "Eva and Magaldi / Eva Beware of the City" Eva sings: "Monotony passed, suburbia departed. I could never be fond of the back of beyond."

That's it for now! I'll continue to update the list of references when necessary.

Get to Know Me!

2013-02-14T17:17:42Z

I stole this meme from argylepiratewd. I wanted to summarize my fan interests for anyone who may have forgotten who I am, or who is just stumbling across this journal.

Name: florianschild, but I am dannybailey on LJ so I go by Danny.
Age: 25
Location: USA (If I lived in Panem, I would be in District 12)
You, elsewhere: Livejournal: dannybailey
Run anything? (comms, websites, etc.) Anything that I would have claimed here is long defunct...

Fandoms: Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, Queen's Thief, Westmark, Song of Ice and Fire

Fave Characters:

Harry Potter: Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Regulus Black, oh hell, I like every secondary character in that series. Main characters too, actually.

The Hunger Games: Peeta, Katniss, Finnick, Gale, Cinna, Johanna, Haymitch

Queen's Thief: Eugenides, Costis, Kamet, Relius (I am inordinately fond of all the characters in the series, these are just the ones I like to write/read about.)

Westmark: Theo, Florian (see new username), Stock

ASOIAF: Jon, Arya, Brienne, Dacey Mormont, Jorah Mormont

Ships:

Harry Potter: Sirius/Remus, Albus/Gellert, Snarry, Harry/Draco

Hunger Games: Katniss/Peeta, Finnick/Cinna, Finnick/Annie, Katniss/Gale

Queen's Thief: Eugenides/Attolia, Nahusuresh/Kamet, Eddis/Magus

Westmark: Eh, none really.

ASOIAF: Arya/Gendry, Tyrion/Sansa, Sandor/Sansa, Brienne/Jamie

Other media things you like: Gilmore Girls, Xena: Warrior Princess, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Game of Thrones (the HBO series), Dexter

Hobbies: Working too much, reading, cooking, quilting, watching YouTube videos... I lead a thrilling life, don't be jealous.
Interests: YA fiction, travel, Art History, minimalism, politics, cats
Things you like: coasters, cigar boxes, herbs, coffee mugs, hair clips, stationary
Fave Famous People: Bertrand Russell, The 14th Dalai Lama, Russell Brand, Louis C.K., Jimmy Carter
Six words to describe yourself: curious, introverted, dreamy, earnest, eccentric, bemused, verbose
What do you post in your journal? fic, fic recs, links of interest, musings on current events, occasional real life anecdotes
Why are you on Dreamwidth? LJ was getting a bit spammy, so I'm hoping for a more stable, ad-free centralized location for fan activities

FIC: Making Plans for the Future (Hunger Games)

2012-01-12T23:59:02Z

Title: Making Plans for the Future
Fandom: The Hunger Games
Author: dannybailey
Genre: Drama
Rating: PG-13

Summary: Haymitch is ambushed by Peeta, who has a unique outlook on what it means to win the Hunger Games.

Author's Note: The next installment in my ongoing study of interactions between Haymitch and Peeta. I switched the POV around this time so we get to see Haymitch's perspective, which was a lot of fun. Sorry the wait was so long for this. I appreciate everyone who took the time to read, and especially those who also reviewed. Your positive words kept me focused on finishing this. Thanks again! Read Part 1 of this project HERE.

Disclaimer: All original concepts and characters are mine. All of the familiar concepts and characters are property of the author, Suzanne Collins. I'm not making any money off of this work. It's all in good fun.

Haymitch looked around at the abandoned dining table. Katniss had returned from her training session with the Gamemakers, angry tears streaming down her face, and locked herself in her room. The rest of the entourage from Twelve had dispersed after that. After briefly pounding on her door, Haymitch had returned to the table and debated the semantics of "sober enough" with himself, finally deciding that between Katniss's sobbing and Peeta's reticence he deserved another drink. He took the liberty of pouring it for himself, from the cabinet that someone had decided was safe to leave unlocked that evening.

Deciding that it would be prudent, Haymitch took the decanter with him and set it on a low table in the living quarters. He groaned as he sat back into one of the deeply cushioned chairs that lined the room. Tentatively, he took a sip from the low ball glass. Unlike the pure tasteless burn of the white liquor distilled in Twelve, the spirits in the Capitol always had a flavor. Pine needles, woodsmoke, bubblegum. Haymitch preferred the unadulterated misery that accompanied his local alcohol but, as Seam mothers told their children, debtors call no shots. And just like every Seam family, every Victor owed someone.

Just when Haymitch had started to give serious consideration to a nap, Peeta walked into the living quarters. Peeta Mellark, like his father, had an air of quiet contentment that Haymitch decided must come from kneading bread all day. Great way to work out your frustrations, but not the recipe for a survivor. Haymitch didn't think much of Peeta's chances.

"So you've finally decided to talk again." Haymitch knew he was antagonizing Peeta unfairly, but it helped him keep his spirits high.

Peeta pulled his hands out of his pockets and sat in the chair opposite Haymitch. "I have to ask you for something," he said.

"Oh ho," Haymitch chuckled into his glass. "A favor. Ask away. No promises though," he added.

Peeta took a breath, blowing it out in a soft huff before he began. "I need to you talk with the mentors from District 2," he said, as if he were completely serious.

Haymitch did laugh then, full and guttural. "I can see where you're going with this. You think no one from Twelve has ever tried that before, kid? No matter what I say to Brutus, his kids aren't going to give a shit about you. And if they tell you they do, you can be sure they're only saying it so you'll stick around long enough for them to knife you in the back." He noticed that Peeta's hands were relaxed, his fingers still and calm where they rested against his leg.

"I don't think so," Peeta said evenly. "I've already talked to Cato."

"Knife," Haymitch emphasized. "Back."

Peeta took him by surprise with his response. "Not if I have something he wants."

Haymitch looked more closely at the boy, trying to guage how serious he was about this. He caught no uncertainty in his expression, no hesitation in his voice. He decided to hear him out.

"And what is it that you think you have?"

"Connections," Peeta said immediately. "I told Cato that I have a connection to a Gamemaker."

Peeta didn't elaborate until Haymitch glared at him for a solid silent minute.

"I told him that my mother had an affair with the Head Peackeeper in Twelve. I told him that he's my father. Cray's brother really is a Gamemaker. I heard that from Darius."

Haymitch remained silent while he took this in. The matter-of-fact way that Peeta explained this treasonous lie was both impressive and terrifying. If anyone were to look into it, Peeta's family would be the ones to pay. He probably didn't know that though, and maybe his story would hold up. No one would be surprised to find out that Cray had a few illegitimate spawn running around the District. And Peeta's older brother was friends with Darius, so it was possible that he really did share that valuable piece of information with the Mellark family.

While Haymitch considered Peeta's admission, the boy went on. "I told Cato that Gaius, Cray's brother, knew about me. That he had promised Cray he would keep the mutts away from me in arena, at least in the beginning. Cato seemed really interested, but he said he had to talk to his mentor. So I thought maybe you could say something to whoever that is. Reassure him that I'm not lying."

"You are lying," Haymitch growled as Peeta finished his explanation.

"Well yeah," Peeta agreed casually. "But it won't matter anyway by the time anyone would find out. Which they probably won't, since I told Cato to keep it quiet if he wants me in the pack."

Haymitch decided not to tell Peeta what they outcome would be if "probably won't" didn't work out. "I can talk to Brutus," he agreed. "But you should know that talking your way from Twelve into the Careers' pack is not going to be as simple as all that."

Peeta looked quizzically at Haymitch.

"You have to be able to take a hit." Peeta chuckled at that. "And you have to be willing to draw blood."

Haymitch expected naiveté. No teenager from the back of beyond could possibly have any notion of what it was like in the arena. Peeta did not disappoint. "I can take a hit," he affirmed, lightly touching the side of his face where Haymitch had sucker punched him less than a week ago."And if I'm valuable enough the Careers won't care who I kill. They'll probably be glad to have the kills for themselves."

Haymitch took an enormous gulp of the spirits, swallowing all that remained in the glass. Before he reached for the decanter, he leaned forward and looked Peeta in the eye. "You will kill, boy. To get out of the arena alive, you will. There isn't one victor who hasn't."

Peeta looked slightly sad, his eyebrows knotting together, but he didn't seem particularly upset. "That's another thing," he added. "At the interview, I'm going to tell Caesar Flickerman that I'm in love with Katniss."

Haymitch, who had been pouring himself a second glass of spirits, sloshed the liquid over the rim on the glass. His blood, thinned by alcohol, coursed through his veins as his temper sparked, but he kept careful control over his hand. Slowly, he lowed the decanter back onto the table. He let Peeta's words hang in the air for a moment while he leaned back with his glass in hand. When he spoke his words came out in a growl. "You don't know what you're going to say at the interview. Because I haven't told you yet. But you sure as hell aren't going with that."

This time it was Peeta who was silent, his face impassive and his whole being completely relaxed. It made Haymitch's pulse race faster still. He took a deep sip from the glass and tried again, "That's not going to win you any points with those Careers, if that's what you're hoping. They don't appreciate weakness. And that's what they'll see when you admit you've got a little crush."

Peeta nodded, "I know. This isn't about the Careers."

Still glaring, Haymitch leaned back from the low table between them. "Then why the hell would you say something like that? For Sponsors?" Haymitch laughed. "You might get a few weepy housewives, but honestly, appealing to the tender-hearted only works when you look like Finnick Odair. So, why?"

Peeta's smile had something missing from it, was just a bit too soft around the edges. "Because it's true, Haymitch."

Peeta's blue eyes had never seemed to Haymitch so bright. Was he tearing up? Haymitch had seen his red-rimmed eyes on the train platform in Twelve. He didn't want to deal with another crying tribute, so he ran his tongue over his teeth and said "Well, this should be fun."

"I should tell you something now so that you don't get the wrong idea," Peeta said, his voice flat and steady. "I don't have any illusions about winning. I'm being realistic; there's only one thing I expect that I can do. I want to make sure that Katniss goes home."

Peeta was simultaneously harder and softer than most tributes to come out of District 12. Haymitch marveled at the apparent contradiction. Not having spent his childhood on the brink of starvation, Peeta carried an air of invulnerability about him. The boy had absolutely no notion of what it meant to die. He could not possibly have confronted his own mortality and arrived as so casual a conclusion as to give up his life for a girl that Haymitch was well aware he hardly knew. Haymitch groaned. "No kid," he said. "You don't have to make this into a martyrdom. Sponsors don't go for that shit, if that's your plan. They're not interested in self-sacrifice. It makes the tributes seem too much like humans, when they want to see us all as animals."

Peeta looked like he was about to say something, but before he could speak up Haymitch dealt his last argument, the line that his mentor had used on him and that could convince any kid to wise up. "Don't make your family watch you kill yourself, Mellark. Not over some crush."

Keeping his eyes on his lap, Peeta spoke in a soft voice, "Before I left the Justice Building my mother came in to say goodbye. She said to me that Katniss Everdeen was a real survivor, and that maybe District 12 will finally have a winner this year." He looked up at Haymitch as if expecting a response, but Haymitch just stared back and so Peeta continued talking. "I told her I loved her and I asked her to leave. She pursed her lips, got up, and walked out of the room. I don't think she has any expectations of me doing anything in the arena other than dying."

Haymitch looked at his tribute. Peeta's hands remained still as they rested in his lap, his eyes bright and intense, and the boy did have a way with words. His voice carried determination, touched with just enough sweetness to keep it appealing. Peeta would play well in front of the cameras, and if he was as committed as he said, well maybe Haymitch could find a way to help him. Hell, between the two of them maybe they could bring a winner home to District 12.

Haymitch blew out a sigh, and set his glass down on the table. Meeting Peeta's blue eyes, he said, "Tomorrow morning I'll tell Katniss that you requested to be coached separately. If you want this to work, you'll keep your mouth shut around her. We'll need her reaction to be genuine. The girl can't hold herself back for anything, and we don't want to let the cat out of the bag too early."

Peeta blinked, taken aback by Haymitch's sudden change of heart, and then nodded. "Thank you, Haymitch. I know you're only agreeing to this because you want to bring home a tribute. But it's important to me to make sure it's Katniss, so thank you."

Before Haymitch could reply, Peeta walked away, smiling softly and leaving Haymitch wondering who exactly he had just agreed to save.

FIC: Breaking Bread (Hunger Games)

2011-10-08T13:22:42Z

I wrote fic! It's been so long! And it's not Harry Potter. *gasp* I've been reading so much wonderful Hunger Games fanfic lately, and I guess I just got inspired.

Title: Breaking Bread
Fandom: The Hunger Games
Author: dannybailey
Genre: Drama
Rating: PG-13 for a brief description of gore
Warning: Only one: unbeta'ed :P
Summary: Even on Reaping Day life must go on. Peeta watches the storefront on the morning of the reaping for the 74th Hunger Games. He has a few visitors.
Author's Note: My goal is to show a series of interactions between Peeta and Haymitch. This is the first one. Hopefully there will be more. They have such an interesting dynamic, and we never get to see them without Katniss around, which I'm sure alters their behavior. Especially Peeta. :) Anyway, thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: All original concepts and characters are mine. All of the familiar concepts and characters are property of the author, Suzanne Collins. I'm not making any money off of this work. It's all in good fun.

Haymith Abernathy would occasionally, usually by accident, sober up for a few hours at a time. Sometimes, when he felt well enough, he would come into the bakery, looking for something other than liquor to put in his stomach. Peeta did not know him well.

When the bell on the door of the bakery chimed Peeta looked up, began to smile, and then saw who had walked through the door. The draft of morning air that flew in was lukewarm and just a little bit humid as it accompanied Haymitch inside.

Today he was off balance, walking with his head and shoulders pushed forward like he was trying to push an invisible battering ram against an imaginary foe. Then again, Peeta thought, it was Reaping Day. Maybe the foe wasn't imaginary. Regardless, Haymitch was certainly not sober now, and Peeta doubted that he had come in looking for dinner rolls.

Haymitch stopped abruptly inside the door, reeled, and then looked around the room, blinking as though he had never seen the inside of the bakery before.

Suddenly he scowled. "This isn't the apothecary," he grumbled in his ruined voice.

Peeta didn't respond immediately. The apothecary had been closed for 11 years, since the old couple that ran the shop died with no children to stay on. Amarant Everdeen was the wife of a coal miner and therefore forbidden from working in town. Now the poorest families took their sick to her home in the Seam, and the rest prayed that they had enough to pay the doctor's fees.

Peeta knew his mother would be furious if he let a customer leave without buying anything. "What are you looking for," he asked Haymitch. "Maybe we have something here that could help."

"I doubt it," Haymitch muttered, but he began to walk toward the counter. Peeta eyed him with apprehension. This was the man who accompanied the District 12 tributes to the games each year. That meant that two years ago, he got on a train with Peeta's friend Tavish and came back without him. Peeta wondered if Haymitch had been drunk the entire time.

He looked Peeta over appraisingly. "Shouldn't you be at the square?" His question sounded more curious than accusatory.

"It's hours yet until we have to show up." You should know, Peeta thought. You have to be there too.

"I got stuck with the early shift,” he told Haymitch. “My mother didn't trust me to show up for work this afternoon." He smiled, but Haymitch either didn't catch the joke, or didn't think it was funny. He just pushed his eyebrows together and frowned more deeply.

Before the silence had time to settle, the bell rang again. Fennel Marsh strolled through the door, his shoes squeaking and his cologne smelling pungent and cheap. "I got me these shoes on credit," he announced into the silence. "Yes sir," he rubbed his hands together briskly and smiled at Peeta and Haymitch, "even Dougherty knows I'm gonna make a bundle today. I've got eighty-seven coin on Gale Hawthorn to go. Can you believe I got six people to lay their money against that kid?"

He hooted and started to laugh, and Peeta thought that maybe he was the only person in the room who was not drunk. "Any takers," Fennel asked once his laughter had died down. "If you're feeling lucky you could go with an underdog. Joan Vervain's a good choice. She's sitting right in the middle. Not too much risk. Not a bad payoff. Whaddaya say?"

Haymitch never turned around, and when Fennel grew quiet he spoke in a low voice. "You can get out now."

Peeta watched the two men warily. Fennel ignored Haymitch's suggestion, and stepped closer to the counter. He smiled at Peeta. "How about you, kid? You've pulled a few coin as well. Rumor has it you're in tessera this year."

Peeta took shaky breath and echoed Haymitch's sentiment as politely as he could manage. "I think you should leave Mr. Marsh. No one here is interested in your offer."

Fennel scowled at Peeta and for a moment he glared in what was probably an attempt to look menacing, but when the silence stretched on for a few more beats he threw up his hands. “Well just don't say that it wasn't extended,” he said as he spun slowly on his heel and ambled out the door.

While Fennel had spoke, Haymitch's gaze had focused and hardened on a point far into the distance. Now, he returned and his eyes were hazy and sad again. He stumbled across the rough wooden floor and braced himself on the counter in front of Peeta.

“Can't abide people like that,” Haymitch muttered. “Not without a bottle at least.”

Peeta raised his eyebrows, because from the stumble in his walk and the slur in his speech Haymitch had probably already had a bottle this morning. But he didn't say anything, because of that look that he had seen in Haymitch's eyes while Fennel bet on who would be reaped this afternoon. Maybe two years ago he really tried to help Tavish. Maybe what his eyes focused on in those moments were of Tavish's gut falling inside out onto the brown sand of the desert arena in the 72nd Games. Maybe it hurt too much to hear Fennel anticipate another two.

“I'll take that potato farl if it's fresh," Haymitch said abruptly.

Peeta blinked and then caught himself. “Yes sir, it is.”

“Well hand it over then,” Haymitch muttered as he pulled his wallet from inside his coat.

Peeta wrapped the farl in paper and held it out to Haymitch. When he reached out to take it, Peeta saw that Haymitch's hands shook so badly that he nearly missed the package. “Good luck kid,” he grunted as he turned to go.

“Thank you sir.”

When the bell tinkled again, Peeta let out a heavy breath and rubbed his hands on the front of his apron. He could admit it to himself, he was nervous.

“Peeta,” Leven Mellark said as he came into the store from the baking room in the back. “Was someone here?”

“Yeah,” Peeta said. “Haymitch Abernathy.” A doubtful expression crossed his father's face, but he stopped and leaned casually against the frame of the door. His face was ruddy from the heat of the ovens, and his arms were covered in flour and bits of dough from the tips of his fingers to his elbows. Peeta smiled at him, and slowly, as though considering it for a moment, Leven smiled back.

“He bought a potato farl,” Peeta added.

Leven nodded. “He's probably having a rough day. We all are. But hey,” he said, his tone lighter, “I found us something good for lunch.”

“You did?” Peeta's voice was good-natured, if skeptical.

“Well,” Leven admitted, “I did, in the sense that someone knocked on my back door and offered to sell it to me.”

“Katniss,” Peeta asked, a hint of alarm coloring his voice.

Leven chuckled. “The Hawthorne boy, actually. But he did mention that she might stop by this afternoon. You should try saying hello to her some time.”

Sensing a conversation that he did not want to have, Peeta changed the subject to the first thing that came to his mind. “Fennel Marsh came in here too.”

Leven's eyes narrowed at the name. “Was he with Haymitch,” he asked.

“No,” Peeta said quickly. “He just came in while Haymitch was here. He was taking bets on the Reaping today.” His voice was mild, but he kept his eyes on the floor as he added, “He said some people have bet on me to go.”

Leven's jaw tightened and he walked toward his son. He rested one of his big hands on Peeta's shoulder. He didn't say anything, because there was nothing to say.

Peeta decided to break the silence. “Maybe I should have put some money down against myself. At least if I lose I can skip town without too much difficulty.”

Leven's smile was sad though, and his blue eyes seemed dark as he looked at his youngest son. “You would never do that Peeta,” he said in a low voice. “Integrity is what they take away from the districts with the Games. Fennel Marsh never had any to begin with, and that's why he treats them like a holiday.”

His smile brightened slightly. “Hey,” Leven said, “your cookies are getting really good. If you do go to the capitol maybe you can pick up a couple of tips. You can teach them a few tricks too, I'd imagine. Really impress those sponsors.”

“Right,” Peeta agreed, the slight lilt in his voice the only hint that he was lying. “I've been working on getting the frosting to look shaded. I doubt they've seen that before.” He dragged his finger through the dusting of flour on the counter top. Leven's comments hung in the silence between them. They both knew that if he were to go to the Capital, cookies would be neither his purpose nor his salvation.

Leven looked at the small window in the bakery storefront. Peeta had rearranged the display a few days ago, placing the brightly decorated cakes on boxes that he had wrapped in colored paper and set at different heights. Kids on their way home from the schoolhouse would press their noses against the wavy glass panes, their eyes widening to the size of dinner plates, until Vesta would scold them for smudging the window and shoo them away.

"What should we do with our lunch," he asked, turning his eyes back to Peeta, was was still looking at the counter top. "A soup or a stew?"

Peeta nodded his head and shoved his hands into his pockets in a gesture of acceptance. "Soup sounds good."

Leven frowned. "You know," he suggested, "we could coat it and fry it instead, like I did when you were little. Remember when that was all you would eat for a month?"

Peeta did laugh at that, and his eyes brightened at the memory."You called it your secret recipe. I thought you made it up."

Leven scooped a bowl into the bin of breadcrumbs and held it out to Peeta. "Coated and fried?'

"Yeah," Peeta agreed, reaching out to grasp the bowl. "Sounds great."

Read Part 2 of this project HERE.

dannybailey @ 2009-07-17T00:59:00

2009-07-17T05:33:30Z

I was reading the reviews that others have written about Half-Blood Prince, and I found myself enjoying some of the great one-liners that summed up my own thoughts on the movie. I'll add my own commentary after the quotes, but honestly, these people really nailed down my issues with the movie and the things I liked. I guess that's why they're professional writers. ;)

Eric Melin, Scene Stealers:

“In Rowling’s rich fantasy world, the themes are embedded deep in the details, and “Half-Blood Prince” has none of them. It’s like a rough sketch that the filmmakers are hoping Potter fans will fill in with memories from the novel.”

“By the time the identity of the half-blood prince is revealed, its only significance is that it’s the title of the film.”

Melin articulated my biggest problem with the film: it's called "Half-Blood Prince", but the viewer is never actually shown/told what that really means. I mean, for the overall plot of the series as a whole, Snape's parentage isn't the most important thing. But it is the title of the fucking movie, guys. (And by guys I mean Steve Kloves.)

Scott Foundas, Village Voice:

“Perhaps it goes without saying that a photo of Slughorn's most famous former student is conspicuously missing from that gilded shrine, and the closer Harry gets to discovering why, the more he finds in his newest teacher a fellow tragic, tortured soul.”

When I first made this list I was trying to come up with a positive point from this review that I agreed with. In retrospect, this is pretty corny.

“That second hour always feels as if Kloves just remembered that he has to lay the groundwork for the subsequent movie. The individual installments become extensions on a lengthening fuse.”

Gotta love the Kloves bashing. But honestly, this is a good point. The movie, and half the audience, woke up and hour and a half in and realized 'Hey! We're not a romantic comedy... Oh yeah, that's right; we're meant to be a fantasy/mystery movie. Cool, we're getting right on that.' Fifteen minutes could have been moved around in the script to at least allow Snape more that one declarative, not-at-all-informative one-liner.

“When a waitress hits on Potter in a diner, I was hoping she’d say to Radcliffe, 'I saw what you did with that horse.’”

Ok, I just loved this image. ;)

Rob Humanik, Projection Booth:

“...the effects are less annoyingly "ooh-ahh-special" than I'd come to anticipate - instead, they're more texturally banal so as to ground the proceedings in a believable habitat in which magic is a simple fact of life (as opposed to box office pandering).”

This is something that I think they generally get right. They did an especially good job of in this movie. The magic is present throughout, in subtle ways that make it seem like a part of life, which is part of what makes the books so fantastic.

Sean Burns, Philadelphia Weekly:

“More than an hour is blown on the painfully obvious attraction between Rupert Grint’s Ron Weasley and Emma Watson’s Hermione Granger, but even the payoff of their transparently Han Solo/Princess Leia relationship is cruelly negated by a convenient memory lapse.”

A very good point, Mr. Burns. I'm torn between thinking they should have just put in one more scene to firmly establish the Ron/Hermione canon-ness, OR maybe they could have just left some of the romantic bullshit out and told an actual story. That kind of stuff was fine when adapting books like Order of the Phoenix that don't really have an actual start-to-finish plot arc, but we need some closure here.

Crunchings and Munchings

2009-04-06T20:40:22Z

By far the most frequent thing that I get asked about is the food in Rome. So here is an entry all about food!

Food is interesting to me, especially the way it is dealt with in other cultures. I’ve learned a lot about food since I got here. There is one key thing that I’ve realised about the food here. Everyone raves about food in Italy, and that is with good reason. However, in order to really experience Italian food here you need one of two things: either (a) money or (b) the ability to transform raw materials into delicious meals. As far as I can tell, in order to achieve (b) you basically have to be a tiny Italian grandmother. Sadly, I don’t have tons of money, and I am not an Italian grandmother. This closes off a lot of delicious avenues.

On the plus side, I have had some really amazing food that is affordable and still delicious. Pizza here is very cheap and very awesome. I’ve had pizza with all different types of toppings. I’ve had eggplant parmasean pizza, as well as sun-dried tomato pizza, sweet pepper pizza, and “marinara” pizza, which is just the dough covered with tomato sauce, olive oil, and oregano.

The way you eat pizza here in interesting as well. Pizza is basically the fast food of Italy. If you want a quick lunch, you go into a pizza shop and look at what they’ve got. They keep huge sheets of square pizza behind a glass counter. You point at whatever looks the tastiest and say “questo, per favore” (this one, please). The person behind the counter will hold their knife and spatula across a random span of the pizza (Maybe they decide this based on how hungry you look? I’m not sure) and ask if that’s how much you’d like. You just say yes regardless, because you don’t know how to say “more” or “less”. The counter person will cut your slice and weigh it. Unless you specifically ask, or they are feeling generous and ask you, they’ll wrap it up for you just like that: cold. For those savvy in the ways of pizza culture, you can say to the counter person “riscaldo, per favore,” which will let them know that you’d like it reheated. Once it’s done, you pay. They cut your square slice of pizza in half, and then they fold it over like a sandwich. The pizza sandwich is then wrapped in wax paper. You’re meant to stand at the counter in the store and eat it, but as an American with a schedule to keep I always just munch on it on my way out the door and down the street. They is, without a doubt, the best way to eat pizza. I don’t think there’s any way to go back to Burger King after that.

Some other interesting things that I’ve noticed about food in Italy:

- It’s relatively easy to buy an whole octopus at the local grocery store, but exotic things like Peanut Butter and Soy Sauce can only be found at special foreign food stores called Castroni.

- Italians have managed to embrace some American foods. Oddly, they have Kit Kats but no Snickers, they have Philadelphia Cream Cheese but there isn’t a bagel on the entire peninsula, and (although I never knew it before) turkey is an entirely subjective description for lunchmeat.

- Arancine: Another delicious Italian fast food. Arancine are Sicilian rice balls that have varieties of inside fillings. They’re crispy, salty, cheesy, and sometimes meaty or vegetable-y. Basically, they’re completely fantastic.

Plus, I did get a really delicious week of Italian cooking when my parents came to visit me. With a perfect excuse to dine out every night, we got to try some really fantastic pastas and pizzas. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Ok, that’s it. I’ve made myself way too hungry. Time to go get something to eat!

Catching Up

2009-02-18T14:20:50Z

One of the things I most love about cities are marketplaces. Marketplaces exist in the country too, but they always seem livlier and more exciting in the city. A few blocks from where I’m living in Rome, there was an open-air street market where vendors had stalls of everything you could imagine...

It was great, because the market was actually right along the road that I use to walk to school, so I got to walk through it every day. One morning there were construction vehicles along the road; they had closed the vendors down and were tearing down the stalls. I was totally bummed until I found out what was going on: they were building a brand new complex for the vendors, on the same street but all on one nice, new building.

So now, after a few weeks of marketlessness, the new building has opened and I went in today. It’s covered, but still open to the air so that it doesn’t get smelly or stuffy. There are nice wide aisles for people to walk through and stop at each stand. And there are skylights so that everything looks really clean and bright. It’s a lot like Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, except bigger and newer and cleaner. The cool thing about this market is that they have everything. Seriously, anything you could want to buy. Actually, it’s a lot like going to Target, except each department is owned by a different person, and you have to pay sepaerately at each one. They have a stand that just sells vegetables, one that sells fruits, one with meats, one with cheese. They have a stand that just sells eggs. There are stands that sell pasta. Some sell bread and pizza by the slice. There are shoe vendors, cleaning supply vensors, and fabric vendors. There is even a stand that just sells pajamas. Today I bought a slice of lasagna for lunch (it was amazing, by the way) and the lady gave me a free doughnut. Needless to say, my overall impression of the place is very good.

I know I’ve been lax about updating my blog. (Aren’t you all dying to know what I’ve been up to?) Well, the truth is that I’ve been so busy I’ve hardly had time. That’s actually a good thing though, because it means that I’ll have lots to talk about when I finally do get to sit down and write about it. Two weeks ago I went to Paris for the weekend. Paris was one of my must-see cities, and I wasn’t disappointed at all! I think I made pretty good use of the 48 hours that I had there (Aunt Ja, you would have been proud. I don’t think I could have done it without the supurb example that you’ve always set for how vacations should be done. ) I saw amazing churches and art, and ate some really fantastic French food (fondue, yum!). One thing that made a strong impression on me was the cathedral of Notre Dame. I took a Gothic Art class two years ago, and we talked about how Gothic cathedrals were built so tall in order to be closer to God. Well, I climbed up to the top of the bell tower in Notre Dame. 400 winding, spiral stairs in a narrow tower. All you can see are the few steps ahead of you until the staircase turns out of sight. It’s hypnotic to climb them; you start to think that maybe it won’t ever end, or that you’re on some kind of holy stairmaster that just keeps on going forever. It struck me that someone climbing those stairs during the Middle Ages would have felt like they were climbing to heaven itself. It certainly was a long enough trip.

Paris was beautiful, although I was happy to get back to the much warmer climate of Italy. Just four days after getting back from Paris, I was back in a plane heading to Venice. I wasn’t sure when to expect in Venice, but I was actually blown away. The city itself is the sight, so you don’t need to do anything there other than walk around and take everything in. To add to that, it was pre-Carnevale weekend so there was a lot of excitement in the air. There were quite a few people dressed in crazy elaborate costumes and masks. I loved all of the beauty and the color; I’m pretty sure Carnevale is the coolest festival idea I could imagine.

Now I’m back in Rome for a few more days, catching up on work that I’ve been neglecting. I’m working on my photography (I’m taking a black and white photo class), and preparing for a class field trip to Naples this weekend. I’ll be doing a presentation on a painting while we’re there, so I’ve been putting that together. Next week is midterms; I know that it’s cliche, but I seriously can’t believe how fast my time here is going.

Typical Tuesday Morning

2009-02-03T11:53:14Z

Today was amazing. Even more amazingly, it’s only 12:30 in the afternoon.

My first class met at Piazza del Popolo, one of the main squares in Rome. We walked all over and saw 6 Caravaggio paintings that are still hanging in churches. It’s amazing for me, because I’ve studied these paintings in art history classes every year since I was 16. Seeing them in real life, in the chapels that they were painted for is unreal.

After my class, I walked around on my own for a little while. Yesterday my Photo teacher took us to a coffee shop that he says is one of the best in Rome. I decided to go there again today (it seriously is amazing, by the way) and I impressed myself by ordering completely in Italian. I think it says something about Italian culture that the very first thing that they’ve taught us in Italian is food vocabulary and how to order in cafes. Either way, speaking in Italian definitely offers a much more pleasant experience.

After my pick-me-up I started wandering and I ended up doing my Italian homework on the steps of the fountain in front of the Pantheon. It was insanely awesome. Being among such amazing monuments certainly makes even monotonous homework more exciting. While I was in the square I was watching two waiters stand outside of a trattoria with nothing to do (it was only 11:00am). They looked bored so I asked them if they would check over my Italian homework to see if it was correct. (I had to resort to English to ask them that.) One of the waiters looked it over for me, and then he gave me his email in case I ever had more questions. So friendly! I’m starting to realise that the best way to interact here and to have good experiences is to be outgoing and to really put yourself forward. I’m going to be practicing that in the next few months.

A quick note to everyone who’s reading: I want to send postcards to everyone soon! If you want a postcard you can comment here with your address, or email it to me at <sirius.loves.remus@gmail.com>. I’d love to send everyone who is reading this a postcard, so please do comment and let me know where to send it to!

Updates to follow…I’ll be talking all about Italian food!

Work and Play!

2009-01-25T23:40:33Z

A very long (probably tl:dr) entry about my first "down to business" week in Rome.

This first part is about the school week, which is Monday through Thursday. Monday was my first day of classes, and also happens to be my fullest. I’ve got three of my four classes, and I start early (for me anyway!) at 8:30. It was so hard to drag myself out of bed that morning, and I felt like crap all during my first class – which happens to be a four hour photo class. Yikes!

Even after a somewhat rocky start, things turned out good. My photo professor is amazing. He’s a professional photographer, and he’s actually from Rome so he knows all of the great places to go. His English isn’t perfect, so he talks slowly and softly, and is generally really calming to me. Even though our class is insanely long, it’s so enjoyable hanging out with him that I really don’t mind. :) It’s a small class (about 8 people) and we went walking around the city to Piazza del Popolo and the Ara Pacis museum. I loved the experience of being in Rome with a native Italian. It’s much different than walking around with other American students.

After photo, I had my Italian class. My Italian teacher is also very cool. His methods are really interesting; his class is almost all conversation. He introduces words and concepts in ways that make everything seem really easy. I don’t think I’ve been taking the class long enough to know how effective it’s going to be, but either way it’s definitely more enjoyable than any Spanish class I’ve ever taken. Also, he thinks it’s hilarious when we pronounce things wrong and is constantly laughing at us and making fun of American pronunciations. It’s ok though since he makes fun of Italians too, and admits that they are incapable of pronouncing the ‘th’ sound. (It’s so true! Italians use the ‘d’ sound in place of ‘th’ so that the word ‘the’ sounds like ‘da’ and the word ‘they’ sounds like ‘day’.)

Finally on Monday, I had my Baroque art history class. I was most excited for this class, and I was not at all disappointed. Our professor is an American woman, but she has lived in Naples for 10 years. She’s got a phD in Art History from Penn State (of all places!) and she seems like she’ll be really interesting. The art history classes here are structured perfectly, because each week we meet once at school for a lecture, and then we meet again somewhere in the city and we get to see artwork in person. It is definitely the most rewarding way to study art. I’m terribly jealous of Italian students!

So my second meeting for Baroque – Tuesday morning - we met at the Vatican Museums. I’ve been more excited about going here than just about anything (thanks to a really amazing High Renaissance class last semester). It was so fantastic. Everything took me by surprise, even works that I’ve already studied. In fact, the most exciting part was having my expectations completely turned around when nothing was as I imagined it. The Transfiguration by Raphael was 1000 times more amazing in person than it was in photographs. And of course, the Sistine Chapel; my stomach literally flip-flopped as I was stepping through the door. Someone said that when you go into the Sistine Chapel you should look at the frescoes on the walls first, then look and the ceiling, and finally look at the Last Judgment fresco on the back wall. The reasoning is that if you look first at the Last Judgment, you’ll never take your eyes off of it. I tried to do that, but Michelangelo’s work honestly does capture your attention and never let it go. The ceiling was amazing. The Last Judgment was amazing. I was literally in awe while I walked through. All I wanted to do was lay down on the floor and stare, but I’m pretty sure the guards would have quickly put a stop to that. :) I’m definitely going back to the museums so that I can have a good long time to explore them.

My fourth class didn’t meet until Wednesday, but it was definitely worth the wait. My professor is literally famous. He’s been on PBS and the History Channel. If you don’t believe me Google his name: Jan Gadeyne. I stopped looking through the search results after three solid pages of websites that mention him in some way. Anyway, I’m taking his Late Antique/Byzantine art history class. It’s exciting, and also a little terrifying. He’s in his fifties, but hes got more energy than I’ve ever had in my life. I don’t even want to know what he was like at 21. Example: he led an 8-hour, 13 mile hike around the city of Rome today. It started at 8am. I didn’t even make it out of bed until 10. :)

Basically, I’m over the moon about all my classes. I never would have predicted three years ago that I would have turned into such a geeky, studenty type, but I totally have. So far, I’ve enjoyed my classes most of all, because it’s so true that Rome is literally a classroom for us and it’s a resource that we take full advantage of.

So, this was my first real weekend in Rome. I say that because even though I was here last weekend, everything sort of melted together during Orientation. Between jet-lag, acclimation to a new city and new people, and not having a set schedule, I can’t even distinguish the weekend from the week in my memory. This weekend, however, was very eventful. :)

Thursday night I took a pass and stayed home. Ok, not the most exciting start, but I swear it gets better!

Friday was a fun day. One of the Temple Rome staff people, Gianni, took us on a tour of La Sapienza, which is Rome’s largest public university. They enroll about 250,000 students, which is positively mind-blowing. That’s about two and a half times the population of the City of Erie.

I guess Friday night is when things really started to get exciting. We got all glammed up in order to go clubbing. We were planning on going to this place called Art Cafe, which is reportedly one of the hottest clubs in Rome. When we got there we had a group of about fifteen people, and the very first guy in line told the bouncer that he was 21 (he is, but you have to lie and say that you’re 25 in order to get in) so they didn’t want to let anyone in our group in. My roommates got in (of course) but I decided to stay with the guys and go to another place. We went to a club called Gilda, where we had gone the week before and had a really good time. The place is really swanky, and there are a ton of rich old dudes who sit around and watch all the hot young people dance. It’s really strange, but they play good music (and their drinks are strong!). We got there pretty early (like midnight, haha) so there weren’t many people there yet. I finished one drink before two of my friends invited me to another club with them, a place called Mucassasina.

This place was seriously intense. It’s a three-story nightclub, and they play different kinds of music on each floor. The first floor, where we hung out, was hip-hop and dance music. The cover charge included one drink. I have no idea what it was that I ordered, but I suspect that it may have been toxic. It was pure alcohol, at any rate. Probably about four shots worth, topped off with a flourescent green substance that I suspect was absinthe. It was vile, and I spilled most of it on the dance floor on purpose before I poured the rest of it into my friend Bob’s cup. I’m such a wimp. :) So here is my summation of authentic Italian nightlife…

---Distance: if a club is in a tourist area, you can bet that it’s going to be full of tourists. This place was way out there. We had to take a bus and a long metro ride to get home.

---Spice girls: Randomly, Italians seem to think that it’s cool to play a lot of Spice Girls music in their clubs. The general consensus between the Americans that I was with: no, that’s really not that cool.

---Men Dancing: this is a phenomenon that is rare in the United States, which I think is a good and bad thing. Basically, men can only dance themselves to a point, beyond which they stop looking cool or sexy and being to look completely ridiculous. Completely ridiculous, as in sinuous arm movements and intense vouging. No one needs to do those things when they’re dancing, much less straight men.

---People touching my hair: This is the first time my blond hair has actually attracted noticeable attention. I felt a lot of random hands petting my head. It was kind of funny, but also very strange. Happily, that’s all that was petted. :)

---American Lyrics: The club played music videos, and some of them had the lyrics displayed on the screen. Apparently, Italians like to sing along to American songs. Hilariously, the lyrics were not always right. The best one that I remember is a song called “Rise Up.” The lyric “over the rainbow so high” came up on the screen as “obadadembo so high”.

---The metro ride home: because we are young and reckless, and because Italians clubs never close, we decided to stay out until the morning metro started running again at 5:30am. Inexplicable, the metro was totally packed when we got on. We literally couldn’t get a seat. It was 5:30 on Saturday morning. I still cannot, for the life of me, determine what so many Italians were doing so early in the morning.

(I honestly cannot believe how much I have written at this point. And I haven’t even touched Saturday or Sunday. I’m going to go quick with the rest of this!)

Saturday consisted of a lot of sleep and recovery from Friday night. When we finally got ourselves up and dressed we got a group of six of us to go eat at a little ristorante near the Colosseum. Seeing the Colosseum was really fantastic, especially walking by it at night. Everything here is lit so perfectly, with just the right amount of light. The restaurant was also great. We has a tasting of five different pasta dishes. My favorite was our first course: Gnocci with red sauce and mozzarella. We also had penne with chestnuts, spinach and cheese ravioli with butter and sage, spaghetti with red sauce, and another noodle (something like fettucini) with artichoke cream sauce. This was my first time having a sit-down meal in Rome, and it was really lovely.

Today has also been really nice. I got going around 11, which gave me just enough time to walk to the Vatican in time for the Pope to come out and say hello. :) The crowd in the square was pretty impressive, and there was a band playing. Religious affiliations aside, the atmosphere was palpable and exciting. The blessing was in Latin and Italian, but he said a few words in Englsh, German, Polish, and Spanish. The man has a seriously heavy German accent. He’s very nice to listen to, even though I couldn’t stop thinking of Dr. Strangelove while he was talking. ;) Seriously though, I was thinking about my Mom and my Grandma, and how much they would have enjoyed being there. For the rest of the afternoon I walked around and explored some areas that I had glimpsed before. I found a couple of good stores, including a very strange combination of department store with a grocery store in the basement. It was good though, because I bought dishtowels and dinner ingredients all in one stop. :)

I spent the rest of the day catching up on school work. I’m not finished, incidentally, so that’s what I’m off to do.

If you’ve read all of this, I seriously love you. Thanks again to everyone who has been commenting on my blog. I adore the comments, and they are inspiring me to keep updating. I miss you all too, and I hope that everyone is doing well! If there’s anything that you want to hear about that I haven’t blogged on (could there seriously be more? haha) just let me know, and I’ll write about it!

Ciao for now!

Food and Churches= Italy

2009-01-16T16:44:28Z

Ah Rome. La Dolce Vita.

Seriously though, being in Rome is amazing. Knowing that I've got four months to discover as much as I can is even more fantastic. The funny thing is, even with four months I still feel rushed. There's just so much to see here, I don't know of you could do it in four years or even in a lifetime. I'm just going to content myself with making the most of all the time I do have here, and packing in as many amazing experiences as I can. That way, when I come back I'll still be discovering new things. (Did you catch that subtle note of optimism?)

By the way, thanks to everyone who is reading my blog and commenting! I love hearing from all of you! Getting notes from family and friends while I'm here is better than candy. :)

I moved into my apartment on Tuesday. I really love it. We've got a lot of space for 3 people, and the terrace is gorgeous. Also, we get a maid who comes every day and cleans the floors, the bathroom, the kitchen, and makes the beds. I'm going to be so spoiled when I get back to the US. :)

So as for my activities since my arrival, I've mostly been going along with the school's orientation schedule, which means a lot of boring paperwork and setup stuff. BUT, we did have a great presentation yesterday on cooking and eating in Italy. We got a recipe book, and I've decided that I'm going to perfect my Italian cooking skills. Luckily for me, it seem like everything is pretty simple (no strange ingredients that I've never heard of), but it's all about getting the right seasonings and cooking for the right amount of time. I'll try out some of the authentic recipes that they gave us, and if anything turns out edible I'll post it here!

One awesome thing I have done is to visit the St. Peter's square at night. The square is amazing. It is encircled by two enormous arms that are held up by massive columns. Truly, I can't get over how much bigger everything actually is than how I perceived it to be in pictures and slides. It was exciting to walk by the walls of the Vatican, and try and orient myself to that map that I've studied so many times. I was trying to figure out where the library is, the Raphael rooms, the Sistine chapel. Also, the square at night is really impressive. I think the Italians must be well-practiced at providing impressive lighting for their many monuments and ruins, because it was lit exactly how you would want an enormous plaza of stone columns and fountains to look. It's lit subtly, so that there are still dark areas, but well enough so that everything is visible. (Unless it's super foggy, like it was when I was there. Michelangelo's dome couldn't be seen at all.) In the middle of the square, the life-size nativity scene and the Christmas tree were still up. (Note to Mom – the Vatican still has their tree up! No Fair!) I got some pretty good pictures of the square, considering the low lighting and the fog.

I've got a bunch of pictures, but right now I can't upload them, so I'll be adding them to the entry later. Ciao!

Now Broadcasting Live(ish) From Rome!

2009-01-12T10:15:13Z

I'm in Rome! I have arrived on schedule and without any major incidents. Of course, all travel has to have some incidents. By far the worst of any of these is the absolutely disgusting carsickness that I have decided is inevitable when riding in cabs through a city. Even seabands could not combat this level of nausea. On the upside, the ride from the airport (especially the first half, before I started inwardly groaning at every jerky stop and start) was spectacularly exciting. I've never felt so “touristy” in my life, that's how impressed I was with everything. Every single thing was suddenly novel and interesting. I gaped at the women driving Ford cars (you know, cause they're American cars), the speed of my taxi (120...but that's in kilometers/hr), and even the trees that dotted the landscape. Haha, even the trees just screamed “Italy” to me.

I got to my hotel (to my everlasting relief – finally out of the taxi!), but I was way too early for check-in. I left my bags at the front desk, and set out. My very first Roman adventure. I'm going to be generous and call it successful. I was able to do what I wanted: to walk to my residence (which I'll be moving into tomorrow) and judge how far of a trip it's going to be with my luggage in tow. I also wanted to find somewhere to sit down for a bit and get something to eat and drink. Preferably something fizzy and full of artificial sweetener. ;) Well, I did find the residence, and I did get food. Sort of. I got a very fluffy cream filled pastry and a cappuccino, which is very Italian and not at all what I was craving. But I knew it was doomed when I stepped into the cafe and the guy behind the counter started speaking in Italian. Very fast Italian. He pointed to the pasty, and then said cappuccino, so I just nodded my head and smiled. I said “si” a lot. Let it be known that I will never mock foreigners who can't speak english again. (I don't think I ever did, actually.) The pastry was good – it had a sort of citrusy flavored cream - and the cappuccino was good too, if not exactly my cup of Diet Pepsi. :) Alas, even coffee and sugar were not enough to combat the fact that I haven't had any significant sleep in 22 hours. I started getting shaky and so I decided to head back to the hotel and crash in the lounge until my room is ready. And so that is where I am now. The walk from the residence to the hotel was about 15 minutes, but it was all uphill and I'm quite tired, so I think it will be even shorter tomorrow going the other way.

As for my first impressions of Rome, they are almost all really good. My only real complaint was the traffic coming in from the airport, and luckily I probably won't have to deal with a lot of that as a committed pedestrian. Otherwise, Rome has so far been very good to me. The lady at the shuttle service helped me out (probably because I looked like I was on the edge of a nervous breakdown) when the supposed shuttle service that Temple informed us about didn't actually exist. The concierge at the hotel was charming and sweet. I especially liked the man who worked at the cafe. We got to talk a little bit, even though neither one of us really spoke the other's language. That was probably the most exciting part of my time so far. It was so interesting, trying to communicate through smiles and gestures and single word sentences. (“Non.” “Si” “L'inglese”) He was super friendly, and he greeted every person who came in as if they were old family friends. The cappuccino and the pastry together were only 2 euro, which I thought was a steal even with the exchange rate. Another favorite moment so far was the very beginning of the ride coming in, I could see quite a way because we weren't in the city yet. In the distance, hazy in the early morning sunrise, were the softest rolling blue mountains that anyone could imagine. The Appalachians are harder to appreciate, because it seems like once you can see them you're already in them. I don't know what the mountains here are called, but they certainly are gorgeous.

ETA: Just a few minutes after writing this post, I got let into my room. Within 30 seconds I got asked on a date by the bellboy. They so weren't kidding about Italian men! :)

Last Few Days In the States

2009-01-08T18:47:46Z

It's high time I updated, considering there are just a few more days until I leave, and I want to get down some of my impressions of packing and preparing.

My winter break has been hectic. Packing and unpacking has been the chief activity. I did manage to squeeze in some time to hang out with friends, which is good because otherwise I've been a hermit. I've watched a lot of movies.

Christmas Break Movie Count:
Dirty Harry*
Batman Begins
The Dark Knight
Iron Man*
I Am Legend*
Prince Caspian
The Crying Game*
Hamlet 2*
Stand By Me

*seen for the first time

I've still got a long list of things to get done before I leave. Packing takes an especially long time because I like to try everything on before I decide to take it. Have to make sure it still looks good, after all. Actually, I thought I was going to have way too many clothes, but I've been very picky about what I'm taking. My pile of stuff to pack isn't even all that massive. I'm shocked. One thing that I have been concerned about is looking completely out of place among stylishly dressed Romans. Now that I think about it though, it's not like I'm on the cutting edge of the fashion world in Philadelphia, and it's never bothered me before. I guess I can consider myself successful if I have enough clothing to keep me warm and to not wear the same thing every single day.

My other big worry is language. I've traveled before, even out of the country, but I realized that I've never been in a country where at least one of their official languages weren't English. I've been told that it isn't a big deal, and I'm sure that's true.

I'm leaving this weekend, so I've really only got a few days to get everything together. There are a few butterflies, but I think they'll mostly disappear once I get past security. The worst part is going to be mom crying as I leave, because it's always sad when she cries. :(

Conversations at the Frame Shop

2008-11-18T05:34:39Z

MD and SS and I had a nice long conversation yesterday about travel in Europe, and especially about what to expect from foreign boys. According to SS, being alone with an Italian boy is essentially saying that you'll have sex with him. This is definitely good to know, one way or another. Also, SS warned that Italian law is fuzzy in this regard. Apparently it's a legit defense against a charge of rape to say that if you willingly went to a man's apartment, you were basically asking for it. The general advice is to travel in packs, and to keep your girlfriends close, especially at night.

We also talked about perceptions of Americans abroad. MD and SS said that because they weren't slutty or stupid, they often got mistaken for German or Dutch. Let's see...brain vomit: wear sunglasses all the time, don't be nice to gypsies, there is a good gelato place near the residence that is familiar with Temple students, and reserving seats on the train is important because Italians don't want people sitting next to them.

I have to say, I'm very glad that I've been in a city for the past two years getting used to things. To go from Waterford to Rome would be a double shock: one of getting used to Italian culture, and another one just getting used to how to live in the city. Basically, living in Philadelphia has taught me how to be a lot less friendly. I know how to dispatch beggars, avoid eye contact with creepy people, and make even bitchy cashiers at 7-11 smile. I feel like these skills will carry over in Rome, which is good because it would be twice as hard to learn them while also dealing with a foreign culture and language.

Questions To Pursue

2008-11-18T01:12:35Z

I'm going to make this post a list of questions that occur to me, things that I want to figure out before I leave for Rome. I'll keep the list in this post, and then edit it as I find the answers.

- Laundry soap. Take it with me or buy it there?
------> Buy it there. And apparently the very economical - and very Roman - thing to do is wash clothes in the bath and then air dry them by hanging them out the window. I just hope it's nice enough the be able to do this!

- Water. Can I drink the water in Rome, use fountains, availability of bottled water, and do you have to pay for water?
------> Foutains are a-ok. Rome has public drinking fountains posted around the city, which provide good, free water. And I have the inside scoop: apparently the fountains pour water down around waist level or so, but if you plug up the spout with your finger the water shoots up from a hole at the top so that you can drink it!

- Calling home/cell phones. What is the best way to contact the States?
------> I've heard ringing endorsements for Skype, which I will be downloading and practicing with, because it's currently kind of a mystery to me. Other than the fact that my roommate Freshman year used it to videochat with her bf for free, so that is a good sign. (She not exactly a tech whiz lol.)

Putting it Together

2008-11-12T01:23:31Z

This is my actual first entry since I redesignated my lj. I might eventually backdate an intro post, but I want to make sure I get this entry down before I forget it.

Things are coming together for Rome. I found out yesterday that I received an Art History Scholarship from the University, although I haven't been told any of the details yet. I don't even know how much money I've been awarded. This is especially good news for me, because my single biggest worry for the past year has been money and saving up for this trip. I'm now thinking, based on how much I've got in the bank and how much I need in order to pay off outstanding bills, that I might want to take out some extra loans. While I'm not planning on being extravagant and buying suitcases full of Italian leather shoes, I don't want to skimp either. I want to be able to actually experience Italy while I'm there, and it's probably going to take more money that I have to do that.

Anyway, what I really wanted to get down was the conversation that I had with K, an Art History prof, a few days ago. He was thrilled to hear that I was going to Rome. Actually, he went to Temple as an undergrad, and participated in the same program. :) Anyway, he talked about his experiences and I don't want to forget some of his suggestions. Not all of it is going to make sense to me right now, but I'm hoping that once I'm in Rome it will be clearer. He said to be sure and try Pizza Rustica. I get the impression that this is a type of dining experience rather than a specific restaurant. Either way, he was very insistent about this, and he said that they best place to get it was on the "wrong" side of the river, which is apparently the artsier student area. He also said that there is a grocery store very near the residence. You go down a hill and turn (right?) for groceries, and (left?) for the open market. Or the other way around, I can't remember now!

Oh, I also talked to a student who was in Rome last spring. She was super informative as well, and she had a lot of good practical information. She said the public transportation pass can be bought for a months worth of unlimited use, which I think was about 30 euro. That's seriously amazing compared to Septa's rather crappy $78.00 for a monthly pass. It's literally cheaper to buy tokens (@ $2.90 for 2) every school day, which is totally insane. Anyway, I also asked her about the weather, and she said to definitely bring warm clothes. My vision of Italy doesn't really incorporate the cold, but I have to be realistic. ;) Boo for winter, but I'm excited anyway.