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Italy | Public Transportation

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By Andrea Zachrich

Coming from Los Angeles, where the public transportation is seldom used and pretty inconvenient, I thought the public transportation in Rome was awesome. Yes, it was almost never on time, and yes, it was often crowded with people who couldn’t seem to figure out a bus map, but the whole month I was there it got me where I needed to be mostly on time.

So there’s three kinds of public transportation in Rome: the subway, the busses, and the trams. We mainly used the busses and the trams. There are only a few subway lines in Rome because every time they attempt to build a new line, some ancient monument or site is found and they have to stop construction. They’re attempting to build a new one by the Coliseum at the moment, but it has been slow going. They also don’t have any subway lines that go under the river and into Trastevere. I only used the subway twice the entire month I was there, so I didn’t find it particularly useful, but it could be if you’re staying near a stop. The trams are awesome, but there’s only 2 lines – the 3 and the 8. BUT, both lines go to very convenient places. The 8 ends in one of the main piazzas of Rome – Piazza Venezia – and goes to Trastevere, and the 3 has stops near the Coliseum, Largo Argentina (where Julius Caesar was murdered!) and other ancient sites. Another advantage of the tram is that it’s almost always on time. If the tram gets you to your location, it would be my first choice of public transportation to use. The busses are the most extensive type of public transportation in Rome and can get you almost anywhere in the city that you want to go. The one downfall to them, however, is that they are constantly running late. Sometimes they’re running so late that you think they’re on time because they get there at the time it says the bus after them should be there. There’s a ton of tourists on busses, because this is the form of transportation that stops at many of the main tourist sites, but as long as you’re not going as peak hours it’s usually isn’t unbearably crowded.

What I did

So, I was there for a month, and I knew I was going to be using public transportation extensively. If we ever used the bus as a class, those tickets were covered, but everything else was our own responsibility to pay for. So I decided to get a month long unlimited bus pass. Our program director offered to reimburse us the cost of all the tickets we would use as a class (16 euros) if we decided to purchase our own pass (which was 38 euros). It was a great deal. I definitely used the bus/tram more that the 15 times I paid for (in terms of individual tickets) and it was nice to have the peace of mind that comes with knowing I could always use it if i needed it. Also, with our apartment a 20-25 minute walk from where we met every morning, the bus pass was a god send. I used it to get around town when friends visited, my brother was here, or I just wanted to go out and explore. It made exploring Rome easy and fast, and I’m very glad I purchased one.

What you should do

If you’re just there for a few days or a week, and know you’re going to be using the public transportation system a lot, I would get one of the passes that will let you have unlimited rides. I think they have 1 day, 2 day, 3 day, and 1 week passes. If you don’t think you’re going to be using public transportation that much, then you can also buy individual tickets. They’re 1.50 euro and are good for 90 minutes. If you’re there for a month like we were, I would get the month pass. It really depends on the length of time you’re going to be there and the amount of public transportation you think you’re going to use.

Where do you buy bus tickets?

Italy is very unique in that you cannot buy bus tickets at the bus, and you cannot buy bus tickets at the bus station (unless you’re at one of the main ones such as Termini). You have to get them at Tabacchi. In English, these are translated into Tobacco Shops, and, even though they sell cigarettes, they also sell a lot of other items as well. Tabacchi are the place to go for stamps, snacks, bus tickets, occasionally SIM cards etc. It’s basically just a very specific convenience shop. Look for a white “T” enclosed in a blue square, and they should have public transportation tickets!

A photo of a typical Tabacchi shop I stole from the Internet

Some tips for the public transportation

Part of the reason using public transportation in Rome is so easy is because you can use Google maps to tell you the route you have to take. This is awesome, because in many places the public transportation system isn’t mapped out on an app like this. You type in where you want to go, and Google maps will tell you how to get to the station, how many stops you have, which stop to get off of, and how to get to your destination. They also usually provide more than one option of how to get there. I included some photos below.

So the way the tickets work is that you get them stamped by a machine as soon as you walk on the bus as a way to start the 90 minute time. You should always stamp your ticket. I know it seems like you might be able to get away with not stamping it and then reusing the ticket, but one of the students on my trip got a nearly 100 euro fine for not stamping her ticket (even though she had one!) If you have the passes for more than 1 trip, the officer will scan it to make sure its still valid (but they’re not really looking for you because most of the times tourists with those tickets don’t abuse them).

Another tip: watch you stuff closely. They’re aren’t a ton of pickpockets on the streets of Rome, but they are a lot on the busses and trams! One of the students in our group got here wallet stolen by a group of pick pocketers who had a baby with them, so don’t assume that just because people look like a family on vacation that they won’t take your stuff. Always zip your bags and hold it in front of you.

Public transportation in Rome is super easy! Have fun and be safe 🙂

Italy | Pompeii Field Trip

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By Andrea Zachrich

The Pompeii Forum! That mountain is Mt. Vesuvius

This was definitely my favorite weekend of the trip. As part of the class, we got to take a bus to Pompeii, stay in a motel (with a pool), and visit the ancient site for a day and receive lectures. Having an opportunity like this is honestly so cool. Everything is planned out for you (all you have to do is hop on the bus). You don’t have to worry about tickets for the site or transportation or getting a tour guide or looking up information. Also, our professor encouraged the class to look into visiting one of the islands off the coast of the Bay of Naples after the field trip, so some of us went to Ischia, and it was amazingly beautiful.

Class Set Up

We left for the field trip on a Friday morning and then the site visit was on a Saturday. It takes about three hours to get from Rome to Pompeii by bus, so we got to the motel around lunch time. You get to pick your roommates in advance. The motel is pretty nice – nothing super special but it was clean, had AC, a pool, and breakfast, and the beds were comfortable. It’s also within walking distance to the entrance of Pompeii. You get to pick what you want to do that first day (I’ll talk about the options in a second), and then that evening we went to dinner as a class. Personally, I was not a fan of the food at the dinner, but it was nice to eat in all together in a big group. Then, we all went to bed fairly early because we were walking down to the site the next morning at 8 am.

Options for Day 1

So for that first day you’re there, you basically have three options.

1.Visit Herculaneum with the professor – I did not take this option (although normally this is something I would do) because my brother and I were planning on going here when he flew out in a couple weeks, and I didn’t want to visit it twice. Herculaneum is amazing though. It’s much better preserved than Pompeii because it’s excavations were carried out in a much better and more systematic way. It’s also much less crowded. My brother and I went on a Saturday and there were barely any people there. The site also gives you a very detailed and very useful information booklet, but if you go with the professor you (obviously) wouldn’t have to worry about that. Getting here from Pompeii or Naples is pretty easy. You have to take what we named the “World’s Hottest Train” and I think it’s about a euro or a euro fifty each way. We named it the “World’s Hottest Train” because it was incredibly crowded and there was no AC and that made it blazing hot. Be prepared to break a sweat. Below are a bunch of pictures of my visit to Herculaneum with my brother.

  1. Take a bus to the top of Mount Vesuvius – This is another really cool option that you have for that first day. I didn’t do it with the class because I knew I would be back, but it’s awesome. Basically, you pay 20 euro (10 euro for the bus ride and 10 for the Mt. Vesuvius park ticket) and a bus company with take you up the mountain and deposit you fairly close to the top. There’s great views and you can even look into the crater of the volcano. Mt. Vesuvius is still an active volcano and it was smoking when I went.
  1. Chill by the pool and/or wander around the town – this is the option I chose to do because I knew I would be doing the first two later. I’m not sure if I would recommend it unless you know you’re coming back. But it was very relaxing for us. We found a surprisingly good pizza place next to a parking lot, and then wandered through the town and got more e limone (blackberry and lemon) granitas (peep at my post about food to try if you don’t know what that is). Then we took a nap and hung out by the pool. It was a nice break honestly.

History of Pompeii

At the time Pompeii was buried in the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD, it was a medium-size Roman town right on the coast in the Bay of Naples. About 10,000 people lived there (plus al of their slaves). The eruption actually made it so that the town is now about 2km kilometer away from the ocean, but in antiquity it would have been right on the water. Being on the coast and near a river (Sarno), it was a center for trade and commerce and had a thriving agricultural sector.

We’re not entirely sure who founded the city, but we think it’s been around since the 8th or 7thcentury BC. The Etruscan lived in that area, the Greeks say they had a colony around there, and the Samnite people live in the region also. Either way, by it was definitely a Roman town by the 2ndcentury BC.

In antiquity, the town was mainly known for the products it produced. One of the more famous was garum, a fermented fish sauce used extensively by the Romans. Italian food doesn’t reflect this taste today, but garum was essentially used as salt to flavor food. Some of the best came from Pompeii. The town, being right next a volcano, had incredibly fertile volcanic soil in which to grow produce. Pompeii was also well known for its grapes/wine, figs, olives, nuts, and other types of food. The area was also a place where many wealthy Romans would have vacation villas where they would go during the summer to escape the heat of the city. As you can imagine, Pompeii was a fairly well – off city.

The beginning of the end for Pompeii started in 64 Ad, 15 years before the fateful eruption. In that year, there was a gnarly earthquake that the town was still rebuilding from when the eruption happened. Earthquakes continued to occur in that time frame before the eruption, but it doesn’t seem as though they did as much damage as the original.

In 79 AD, the people of the Bay of Naples woke up to a really loud bang. They didn’t know what had caused it, but it was the magma of Vesuvius breaking through the surface. By about mid-day, there was a massive mushroom cloud in the sky. Ash and small pumice stones began to fall like rain. It was at this point that many people left the city. Soon after, buildings began to collapse due to the weight of the stones falling. At this point though, almost everyone in the cities were OK (unless a building fell on them or something). Many went to bed thinking that they would wake up in the morning and the raining rock would be over. That night, pyroclastic surges – incredibly fast gushes of heat and ash – began to run down the mountain and wash through the town. It was these that killed people and leave the famous plaster casts you can see today – the surge would suffocate someone almost instantly.

It is believed that the emperor at the time, Titus, tried to send a rescue mission where they found no survivors. There is also a theory that this rescue crew may have dug up the treasury and some of the art from the forum of Pompeii, because that has yet to be found during excavations (although it’s possible that it’s in a part of the town that has not yet been excavated). The rescue crew deemed recovering the city a lost cause, and eventually, the buried town was forgotten by history.

But, in the late 1700’s, when they were digging a well, Pompeii was re-discovered. Massive excavations were done (none too carefully I might add). People were fascinated with the town. It still had much of its frescoes and mosaics and shops and homes very well-preserved. Nowadays, Pompeii (and Herculaneum) can provide scholars with some of the best evidence to learn about day to day lives of ancient Romans. From the election notices on the walls to the dirty graffiti to the brothels to the homes in Pompeii, there is a ton to be learned about the ancient Romans here.

Side note on the plaster casts of people: they still have them, but there are a lot fewer than there used to be and they don’t really have any plans to make more, which I think is a good thing. Honestly, I think it’s barbaric to use the exact moment of someone’s death in a brutal and catastrophic way as a macabre form of entertainment for tourists. Would you want your moment of death, especially in one as scary as this, to be looked at by millions of people hundreds of years later?? But, I digress.

My favorite things about Pompeii

Being with professor Gurval, we learned quite a few fun facts about Pompeii that I really enjoyed, so I thought I would list a few facts and my favorite places there.

  • If you see red painted letters on an exterior wall, it’s probably an election notice. Pompeii has some of the best evidence for these. Through these, we learn that women did have influence over and participate in politics by promoting candidates even though they could not vote. It was awesome to go with our professor because he could translate them for us.
  • Many of the mosaics on the floors of shops will tell you what they are. If you see a ship, it could be a shipbuilder or a merchant. If you see wine, it’s probably a wine shop. Also, the Romans had bars and fast food very similar to us today. They would keep food or drinks in little holes cut out of the bar, and many places even had furnaces to keep them warm.
  • Ancient Rome had a ton of brothels (like really, there were a lot). In Pompeii, we have a particularly interesting example that has different sex acts painted over the doors to rooms. Some have speculated that patrons to the brother would pick the type of sexual encounter they wanted based on the picture above the door, but others think it was just decoration (or maybe inspiration for the customers) in the brother.
  • The House of Vetii – this house is awesome and in very good shape. It was built by two freedman (ex-slave) brothers who lived together. It’s got gorgeous frescoes of mythological scenes, and a few interesting representations of Priapus (the god of male fertility who is almost always depicted with a massive phallus).
  • The forum – this is your pretty typical Roman forum, but I found it particularly interesting because the largest building there, a slave market, was actually built by a woman. Pompeii actually caused a lot of Roman scholars to rethink their (sexist) views that women were not players in Roman society. Based on evidence from Pompeii, it’s clear that many had influence and were very wealthy in their own right.
  • You will see stones that span the width of the roads in many places. These are there because Pompeii did not have a sewage system, and people would use these to cross the street when there was rain water or sewage or anything else in the streets. There’s spaces between them so that carts, usually pulled by horses or donkeys or even people, could fit their wheels there.
  • There are a decent amount of stray dogs in the site. As someone who studies Classics, I know it probably isn’t a great idea to have animals in an archeological site, BUT THEY’RE SO CUTE! Here’s one from Pompeii.

Tips for Visiting

Go in the morning as soon as the site opens. And go on a weekday. This place got packed by the time we were ready to leave around 2. Also, unless you don’t mind paying for the overpriced food in the café that on-site, bring snacks. You can also bring in a water bottle – they’ve actually run pipes back into some of the ancient fountains so you can drink that. I would also have some plan of what you would like to see in advance. As you can imagine, it’s quite a large site and you could save yourself some walking by not having to backtrack.

As I mentioned earlier, we had the opportunity to go to Ischia following our visit (and I know some other people in the class went to Capri). I would recommend Ischia because there are a lot less tourists and most of the tourists there are people from Naples. The food is delicious, they don’t over charge you for food, it’s not as crowded, and the beaches are gorgeous. There’s also a really cool castle right off the coast that you can walk across a bridge to get to. The castle has a ton of buildings and even a torture museum! We had a great time on Ischia, so if you have the chance to go, I definitely would.

This was a great part of our trip. I feel very fortunate that it was included in the program and I feel like I learned a lot of ancient Rome by visiting Pompeii.

Italy | Palazzo Massimo alle Terme

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By Andrea Zachrich

This was one of the most fun museums we got to visit, mostly because we got to go through it at our own pace. We goofed around a little bit with some of the art, and they had some really interesting exhibits as well.

A little background

The Palazzo Massimo alle Terme is one of four Roman National Museums. The other three are the Baths of Diocletian, Palazzo Altemps, and Crypta Balbi. Our class also visited the Crypta Balbi and the Baths of Diocletian (as an optional trip), but I’m not sure I would go to the other ones. The Crypta Balbi (which is over by the Largo Argentina) is cool because it goes through a bunch of layers of excavations, from an ancient stone theater to medieval and Renaissance pieces, but it is fairly small. The Baths of Diocletian mainly has ancient Roman inscriptions, but unless you have someone like our professor who can translate ancient Latin (or can do it yourself) it might not be the most interesting place to visit. We didn’t get to go to the Palazzo Altemps, but I’ve heard its mainly pieces from the Renaissance, which would be cool but was outside of the scope of our class. This museum is located near the Baths of Diocletian and the main train station in Rome, Termini. It’s pretty easy to spot because it’s a big, yellow building. The building was constructed during the 19th century, and was originally a Jesuit college, until 1960 when it was given to the city of Rome. In 1981, it became one of the buildings of the National Roman museum.

A little about my favorite pieces

This museum is massive, and there’s a lot of art, like a lot, like four entire floors of it. Here’s a few of my favorite ones.

The entire bottom floor is Roman coins, which is awesome. You can really learn a lot about the ancient Romans from their coins. During the Republican era, wealthy Romans would commission coins to glorify their actions and their family, often using them as a way to gain publicity before an election. During the imperial era, emperors would commission coins with monuments they built, their face, or symbols of popular actions they took as a way to remind the people of their power or increase their popularity. The coins can also be useful in determining what certain ancient monuments that no longer survived looked like. For example, we know the Temple of Deified Julius Caesar, of which there are only foundations left today, had a star on its pediment because we’ve found a coin with a representation of the building.

The statues there are also amazing, and there’s an almost overwhelming amount. The Boxer, a well-preserved bronze statue of a boxer, is very cool and amazingly detailed. You can really see how exhausted the boxer is, and if you look closely, you’ll notice that the sculptor even included scars on his subject’s face. They also have a couple of copies of The Discus Thrower, a commonly copied statue. The original in Greek. Additionally, they have many busts of Emperors, including a particularly cool one of Augustus as Pontifex Maximus (the head priest of Rome). There’s also many statues of gods and goddesses. Below I included some examples of statues from the museum.

Augusuts as Pontifex Maximus, and Mike as Augustus

Something unique about this museum that not many other museums have is mosaics. This place has a ton of mosaics, and there are some really beautiful ones. My personal favorite is one that depicts a scene from the Nile river in Egypt, and even has a hippopotamus!

Lastly, the crowning jewels of this museum is their huge collection of frescoes, many of which are beautifully preserved with vibrant colors. They display these frescoes in a really unique way by placing them on the walls in rooms exactly how they were found and, in some cases, allowing you to walk around in the room to get a sense of what the room they were in looked like. Our Professor even gave a lecture in a room of frescoes from the Villa Livia in Primaporta – a villa owned by the wife of Augustus in the Roman town Primaporta, and they are gorgeous.

Tips for visiting

The combined ticket for this museum, which costs 12 euros and is valid for three days, will also get you into the three other Roman National Museums discussed earlier: The Baths of Diocletian, Palazzo Altemps, and Crypta Balbi. The singular ticket that just works for the one museum is 10 euros, so if you’re thinking about visiting any of the other museums, getting the combined ticket would be the way to go. This museum wasn’t crowded (like, at all), but as with many museums in Rome, it doesn’t have air conditioning, so the earlier you can go, the better. The hours are from 9:00 am to 7:45 pm most of the days, so I imagine an evening visit would be nice as well. They make you check your backpacks and large bags, but they have a free coat check, so it’s really not an issue.

Where to eat after

Eataly! (Get it, like Italy but you’re eating). If you live in West Los Angeles, you might already know what Eataly is because the Italian company recently opened a store in the Century City Mall. Eataly is a meat shop, cheese shop, coffee shop, pastry shop, market, and restaurant all rolled into one large building. In the one near the Palazzo Massimo, the restaurant is on the top floor, and the market and coffee shop are on the bottom. It’s a fun place to go to grab a coffee, pastry, some meat selections, or even eat a meal like we did. They have a massive selection of items (I think the pizza list had around 40 different pizzas listed) and it was good. It was also fun to go because now we know that the one in Los Angeles is authentic and we can compare the two when we get back to school!

Pizza from Eataly!

In short, if you have some extra time in Rome, this museum is definitely worth a visit. I don’t know if I would put it at the very top of my list because it’s a little out of the way and not necessarily as iconic of Rome as the Pantheon or the Coliseum or even the Capitoline museum, but it was fun to visit because they have a wide variety of pieces, it’s not very crowded, and it’s right by a delicious restaurant. If you have the time, and you’re a fan of ancient Roman art, its worthwhile to go!

Italy | Packing for Rome

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By Andrea Zachrich

Packing: the dreaded but incredibly necessary part of any trip.

I thought that, since this blog is for future students going on this trip, having a post about packing would be helpful. I know that I wished I had a packing list so I wouldn’t have had to think so much about what to bring.

I’m not going to lie, packing for this trip was difficult. I needed to fit 8 weeks worth of clothes, toiletries, and school supplies in a carry-on suitcase, a backpack, and a purse. I am a notorious overpacker, so I really had to check myself here (I brought 6 pairs of sliders for our 3 day national soccer tournament last fall just to give you an idea). With some advance planning and a little bit of foresight, packing for this trip wasn’t too difficult, and I even kind of enjoyed the challenge of it.

Everyone’s packing is going to be unique, but below I highlighted some of the items I found essential and/or especially helpful by the type of item. I tried to add a little bit of my thought process in order to help my future Bruin travelers (or any traveler in a comparable situation) be able to think about their own packing in a similar way. It’s important to be thoughtful with your packing because you are going to be gone for an extended period of time with a limited amount of space especially if you want to save money and take a carry-on suitcase. It’ll save you unnecessary expense and stress if you think this out before you leave and pack well so that you won’t have to purchase things there.

School Supplies

First thing: check the syllabus for your class BEFORE YOU LEAVE UCLA’S CAMPUS! I actually had a few things that I had to get in advance, such as bluebooks, that I could only (easily) purchase while on campus. The syllabus will also tell you what books you need to purchase and other important information so, as with any class, your syllabus is your friend.

Almost forgot we had to school while abroad when packing

As you can see, I needed…

  • 2 bluebooks
  • Sketchpad and notebook for daily observations: The limoncello one is both tribute to my family, whom always make homemade limoncello around Christmas time, and seemed fitting for a trip to Italy. I found all of these at Marshall’s for extremely reasonable prices if you’re looking for one. I know they also sell them at Ackerman if you’re still on campus.
  • Syllabus: always a good idea to print out in advance. Professor Gurval’s syllabus reflects his typical organization and has a detailed schedule of site visits.
  • Pens and colored pencils: always important, especially since we have to sketch the monuments and keep a daily journal as part of our grade. Thankfully, the sketches aren’t graded because I can’t draw much more than a smiley face.
  • Camera: not necessarily a school supply, but necessary for my scholarship so I put it in this category.
  • Laptop: this one is a no brainer for me because I use my laptop for everything. If you think it will be useful in your studying after reading the syllabus, I would bring it.
  • Chargers: for everything (laptop, phone, camera, any other small devices such as a Fitbit or a Kindle).
  • Textbook: we had one for this class called Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide and an optional one entitled In Search of the Romans. I brought both because I happened to have them already from other classes.

Toiletries

You can get a lot of these things in Italy, but it might be cheaper to get some of these things at home. If you’re like me and your skin hates most products, it might also save you some stress to get these things in advance so you know you won’t have any sort of reaction while abroad.

I know that you really wanted a photo of my toiletries

  • My favorite things: shampoo and conditioner bar – these things are so cool and the employees at Lush say they should last at least 80 washes, which will easily cover the trip if you’re like me and don’t wash your hair everyday. They’re space saving which is great for someone like me who has a ton of products for my hair and skin, and no packaging will be going into the landfill, which is a win-win for me. They also only cost about 10 dollars each, which is about 25 cents per hair wash.
  • Medication: make sure you have enough of whatever it is that you need. I also brought some over the counter medications such as ibuprofen, Benadryl, and some cold medicine in case I needed them abroad.
  • Sunscreen: I have heard this is more expensive to buy in Italy, so I brought some with me. I can only use certain types of sunscreen because I break out easily, so I just made sure to grab the kinds I know wouldn’t make me a splotchy mess.
  • Chafe Balm: This stuff has saved my life on numerous occasions. Well, ok, that’s a hyperbole, but it has made my life way more comfortable. I use it for soccer games, walking around campus, hiking, etc. under my arms and on my legs. We’re going to be very active on this trip, so this is going to be essential for me.

Clothes

I won’t go super into detail here, but there are a few strategic things to consider when packing clothes. First off: Rome is HOT during the summer. According to a quick google search, it’s around a 90 degree average temperature during the day and barely gets below 70 at night AND it’s humid as well, so keep that in mind when picking out your clothes. I tried to pick a lot of light and loose cotton fabrics.

All my clothes!

  • Shoes: I limited myself to 4 pairs – sneakers, walking sandals, running shoes, and heels for going out. This covered all my bases in terms of working out, walking around the city for class, and going out to eat and to bar, clubs, etc. I know it seems like a lot of shoes, but, since you wear one pair on the plane, they don’t actually take up too much space.
  • Clothes: I have been told that people in Italy don’t wear workout clothes unless they are working out (a ridiculous concept in my opinion), so I struggled to fit in both workout clothes and wandering around Rome clothes. This isn’t a super important point, but might be nice to think about as you’re packing. In general, I packed mainly dresses/rompers which are perfect for those hot Roman summers. I also had a couple pairs of jean shorts, some tank tops/t-shirts, skirts, and 2 pairs of jeans. I only brought 2 jackets, a jean jacket that I wore on the plane and a lighter sweater for the evenings.

Other

  • Headphones: essential for the plane and when I run. I am planning on running a lot, so stay tuned for a few posts about running routes in Rome near the Accent apartments.
  • Converters: The first time I went to Europe in middle school I was shocked when I realized that the plugs are different. I got these converters on Amazon for around 10 dollars for 2 of them. One has USB plugs and the other has a regular plug. You’ll need the ones with two prongs.
  • Passport and ID: Obviously, these are very important and needed to get on the plane. Make sure to make copies in the unfortunate case that they get lost or stolen.
  • Euros: You can always exchange euros at the airport or when you arrive in Rome, but I did it ahead of time because my bank would exchange them for no fee. I mainly plan on using my travel credit card while abroad (there is a Visa card that will pay you back all of your international exchange charges if you’re looking for a credit card to use while abroad), but I thought it would be nice to have at least some cash.
  • Scarf: some places in Rome want you to cover your shoulders, so I brought this scarf with me for those places. It could also double as a beach towel.
  • Water bottle: you will be walking a lot, so a reusable water bottle is nice to have.
  • Sunglasses and hat: As stated above, its hot in Rome, so these are essential. I brought a fun sun hat and a UCLA baseball cap. #gobruins

Items I will be purchasing in Rome

I tried to buy the lease amount possible while there, but there are some liquids I just couldn’t quite manage to fit…

  • Laundry detergent: I thought about bringing some detergent sheets, but thought it would be easier to just use regular detergent and purchase it when I get there.
  • Lotion: I wanted a larger bottle for my very dry skin and it wouldn’t fit in my quart sized liquid travel bag.

Go forth and pack! I know it’s not the most fun part of traveling, but packing well will help you have fun later!

Italy | My Favorite Running Route

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By Andrea Zachrich

While I haven’t been running nearly as much as I would like to while I’m here (this heat is BRUTAL), I have found some nice runs around our apartment. My personal favorite goes through Piazza Garibaldi, which has amazing views of all of Rome. I had a friend who lives in Rome show me this spot, and I’m so glad he did. Even if you don’t like to run, I still think it’s worth a trip up there both because its free and it has gorgeous #views.

This is around a 5.3 mile run and it takes me about 50ish minutes (depending on how fast I’m moving and how hot it is). There is a water fountain towards the end of the route, so you don’t necessarily have to carry water with you if you don’t want to. I would recommend running in the early morning or, if you’re like me and can’t quite wake up that early, in the evening shortly before dusk in order to catch the coolest times of the day when the sun is also up.

The route starts on the main street in Trastevere (the neighborhood we’ve been living in) just because its easy. It then climbs quite a bit up towards the Piazza using a set of stairs with a face painted on them. This run is kind of hilly (because you obviously would have to run up a hill to have a great view), but its very doable. I’ve done it with other people from the program and we’ve been able to have a conversation while running, so its really not that bad.

After some twists and turns, you arrive at the Piazza. I usually take a break for a minute or two to admire the views and rest after running up the hill. You then then run back down the opposite way you came all the way down to the Tiber river. Next, you would run along the river until you come to the staircase that just passes the starting point on the main street, and go up the staircase and finish the run by heading back to Viade Trastevere.

Views from the Piazza

It’s a simple route, with some great views and cooler air down by the Tiber. If you’re planning on running while you’re abroad, I would definitely look into doing this run. If you want a great view of Rome, then I would recommend visiting Piazza Garibaldi. Happy Running!

Statue at the center of the Piazza

Italy | Mr.100 Tiramisu

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By Andrea Zachrich

I adore this little place. It’s right in the heart of Rome near the Pantheon and Piazza Navona (see the map below). My friend Chloe and I stumbled on this place one day by accident while we were out scoping some sales for the start of the summer sales in July, and I’m so glad we did because it is such a creative and cozy restaurant. What caught our eye at first is actually a rotating conveyor belt of tiramisu in the window (we’re easily distracted, I know). This place easily had the best tiramisu I had while in Italy (and I was in Italy for close to 6 weeks).

The black marker is where Mr. 100 Tiramisu is!

On a side note: tiramisu is one of my favorite Italian desserts. I love canolis because my great grandma used to make them for holidays, and I love gelato because it’s the better version of icecream, but I’ve eaten more tiramisu that those two deserts because I worked in a fancy, little Italian restaurant in high school as a salad and desert prep chef. My favorite part of the night was whenever we used up 6 slices of tiramisu, because that meant the container where we prepped it was empty and I could scrape out all the leftover pieces with a spoon and eat it (and there were always leftover pieces, tiramisu can be a hard desert to serve). In short, I’ve eaten a lot of tiramisu in my lifetime, and feel that I am a fair judge of how good it is.

So the only thing they serve here is tiramisu, appetizers, and wine. That’s it. But, they do have 100 different kinds of tiramisu and a fairly large appetizer menu, so you have a lot of options. My personal favorites for tiramisu were the nutella, fig (I love everything with figs though), and classico (the OG tiramisu), but they have a ton of fun flavors. I didn’t try any of the appetizers, but all the cheese plates have great reviews online and look gorgeous. As you can see from the menu, they have tiramisu with nutella, different kinds of candies, fruits, cookies, honey, and even with alcohol! The way the tiramisu works is that the restaurant starts with a base tiramisu (of which they have different kinds depending on what you order) and then they add ingredients while you’re waiting (and watching, which is cool) in order to make it into the tiramisu of your choice.

Sorry, its a bit blurry, but you get the idea.

The atmosphere inside of the restaurant is also very cozy and welcoming. The walls are painted brick and decorated with all the different kinds of wine they serve. The tables are simple, made of wood, and comfortable. The appetizers are served on slabs of wood that add to their charm. The people who worked here were very friendly, and gave us some suggestions when we asked what his favorite kind of tiramisu is.

Chloe with our tiramisu. Here we have caramel and fig, nutella with banana, and cinnamon raisin YUM

The only downside about this place is that it’s almost impossible to try every flavor that’s there because you would have to go everyday for more days that I was in Rome. I can’t remember exactly what it cost, but I do remember thinking it was a little expensive, maybe around 10 euros for three medium slices of tiramisu. But, split with a friend, that’s only 5 euros for a tasty treat (don’t quote me on these prices though). I would go here if you feel like treating yourself, or really have a craving for tiramisu because this is the best I had in Rome and even in Italy.

Italy | La Salumeria

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By Andrea Zachrich

La Salumeria Sandwich Shop

A little bit of background on this salumeria (Italian for butchery) shop: it’s about a block away from the education center where we went while in Rome for our orientation, midterm, and final. We discovered it after our orientation when we typed something along the lines of “close and cheap lunch” into google, and went back after our midterm and our final too.

This place is delicious. It’s everything a sandwich shop should be: tasty bread, wide selection of meats and cheese, inexpensive, and fast. Everything I tried there was delicious, from the meat platter I accidentally once thought would serve as an appetizer and then completely filled me up to all the different sandwiches. If you’re over near the Pont S’Angelo or the Pantheon, you should stop by for a fast and yummy lunch.

I snagged a couple of photos of their menu from the business’s website. As you can see, they translate everything into English which, while unnecessary, is always nice (especially after we took our midterm and final and our brains were fried). Side note: I’ve noticed that any other country where I spend a decent amount of time, I get really good at translating menus (mostly because I love to eat), and I’m sure you will too with Italian. Anyways, here’s La Salumeria’s menus:

A fan favorite among our group was the “Pork in Progress”. I really liked “Thanksgiving Day”, “Il Fico”, and “Williams” (clearly, I like fruit in my sandwiches). I also really enjoyed the chopping board “De Salumerie”. But, I feel like you really can’t go wrong with sandwiches or meat platters here. Below, I included some photos of some of our orders. On a side note: they have vegetarian items here but they have meat hanging from the ceiling right above your head when you order, so it’s not exactly the most vegetarian friendly place.

I also liked the inside of the shop a lot too. There’s meat hanging from the ceiling, bottles all along the walls, and fun decor on the walls. It’s also very casual. You walk in, order at the counter, grab a seat and a drink, and then they call your name when your food is ready and you go and pick it up. As with most places in Italy, you pay after you eat (they really trust people not to be idiots here).

If you’re in Rome, and you’re feeling a sandwich, this is the place for you.

Italy | Hostaria Antica Roma

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By Andrea Zachrich

Hostaria Antica Roma is an awesome restaurant we went to as a group after we visited the Catacombs de Domitilla on the outskirts of Rome, and I have a lot of good things to say about it. All of the food was delicious and it was definitely the best service we had while in Rome (also, it has air conditioning). I would for sure go again the next time I’m in Rome.

The Location

The restaurant is actually in a very cool location. It’s right across the street from and in the shadow of the tomb of Cecelia Metella, which is a large cylindrical tomb along the Via Appia (one of the largest roads leading into and out of the city of ancient Rome). It was a tomb built by a wealthy woman for herself in the 1st century BC, probably during the time of Augustus. She was the daughter of a consul and married quaestor (both very high positions in the Roman government), but she built this tomb all for herself without her family. Some of the original decorations around the outside still survive. In the middle ages, the tomb was turned into a fort and used as a toll station by the family who owned it. Nowadays, it’s a museum and you can go inside of the tomb. Below I’ve included some pictures of the tomb.

The Food

The food here was absolutely amazing. We did a group lunch, so it came with appetizers and dessert. I cannot say enough good things about the appetizers. First off, there was a ton of food. There was a meat platter and grilled veggies and an amazing garlic cheese spread and bread and fish and olives – literally so much food. I was nearly full by the time our entrees came.

One of the appetizers – the meat platter

We got to pick from about 10 selections for our main dish. Personally, I was really excited because the food was based off of ancient recipes from a cook named Apicius. During the spring quarter right before this class, I had actually taken a class about ancient food and medicine and had made some recipes from the same cookbook as part of a final project. I immediately emailed my professor about it because I was stoked. I got a lasagna based on an Apicius recipe, and it was very unique because it did not have any red sauce. Even though tomatoes are a staple of Italian cooking now, the ancient Romans did not have them because they are a crop from the new world. As such, this lasagna was made of noodles, cheese, meat, and had some fennel in it. It was tasty.

The Lasagna! I know it’s kind of funky looking but it was delicious

For dessert, we also go to pick from a limited menu. Our table got tiramisu and chocolate mousse, and both were delicious. I would recommend either (or both if you’re feeling ambitious).

Tiramisu!

The Experience

A big part of the reason this was one of my favorite meals in Rome was because the waiter, Paulo, really did a great job. I’ve worked as a server, and I know how hard it can be to interact with tables. He told us all about the history of the restaurant (which is owned by his father) and knew a lot about the history of the tomb across the street. He was also very knowledgeable about the recipes from Apicius. He told a lot of cheesy jokes and put everyone in a good mood, which I can appreciate. Plus, the food came out incredibly fast. The entrees were ready for a table of around 20 almost immediately after we had finished our appetizers. This place is really a smoothly run restaurant with great service.

The only bad thing I could possibly say about this meal was that it was one of the more expensive I had in Rome, but I think it was worth it. If I remember correctly, it was just under 30 euros, which isn’t horrible considering the massive amounts of food we got. If you’re an adult with a real job and not a broke college student, the price would be super fine for a vacation lunch or dinner.

Overall, this place was amazing. It has unique entrees, good appetizers, great service, and is in a really cool location.

Italy | Giolitti

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By Andrea Zachrich

Giolitti

This is hands down the best gelato I’ve gotten in Italy thus far, and I’ve been here for almost 2 weeks! They have a million flavors and it’s not very expensive.

Where is this place??

This place is near the Piazza Navona, which actually used to be a racetrack in antiquity (but more on this later when we talk about the Stadium of Domitian). Now, it’s an open public space with a lot of street performers and food places along the outside. When we were there on a Tuesday evening, there were singers and a man blowing giant bubbles using a homemade contraption. It was very entertaining. In the center of the Piazza is the famous “Fountain of the Four Rivers” topped with an Egyptian obelisk called “The Obelisk of Domitian”. The fountain (minus the obelisk) is by Bernini – a famous Baroque era artist. Each of the four men represent one of the four continents (Asia, Africa, Americas, and Europe). They’re not labeled, but they are identified by items they are holding and what clothes they are wearing. I’ll leave it up to you to identify which statue represents which continent (I had to google it). There’s also two more fountains in the Piazza that are interesting to wander around and look at.

This is where the place is! The Piazza Navona is the oblong rounded area in the middle of the map.

What should I order?

So back to the important information: THE GELATO. One important thing to know about this particular place is that you pay first and then you go and pick your flavors. I got a small (piccolo in Italian), which included 2 flavors for 3 euros. I believe the next sizes went up by a euro each, and it was the same price for a cone (cono in Italian) as it was for a cup, so I got a cone.

This place had an absurd amount of flavors. I was with 5 people and we each got 2 different flavors from one another and I don’t think we even tried 1/3 of the flavors there. If you’re lactose intolerant, this would be a great place to go because they have a ton of flavors without milk (latte in Italian) and they label them as such. They also have really interesting fruit flavors I haven’t seen anywhere such as blackberry, limoncello, and pink grapefruit. I really don’t think you can go wrong with any flavors here, but our group collectively decided that the limoncello flavor was the best. If you don’t know, limoncello is a popular after dinner liquor in Italy. I don’t think the gelato had any alcohol in it, but it still tasted similar to the drink.

I know, not a great photo. Even so, I still think it looks delicious.

Embarrassing story time: I walked up to the counter, and I was asking all what all of the flavors were (many of the names are in Italian, and I didn’t know what they meant). I ended up getting Giada, which is a chocolate-hazelnut flavor (would recommend if you like Nutella) and Stracciatella, which is chocolate chip gelato with a vanilla-y base. I went to order by pointing at the flavors, and the guy working the counter wouldn’t let me order until I had failed miserably at saying the flavors and then wouldn’t start scooping the gelato until I repeated the correct pronunciation after him (Giada is a surprisingly hard word to pronounce). Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll mess up those flavors again.

I would definitely go to this place if you find yourself over by the Piazza Navona. We got our conos and went over into the Piazza to people-watch, and it was a great way to spend an evening!

That’s me in front of the fountain that’s on the side closest to the Gelato shop!

Italy | Forum Boarium Temples

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By Andrea Zachrich

The first Tuesday, which is the first full day of the program, we headed out to see the Forum Boarium. This used to be a bustling part of the city used for commerce (mainly trading of cattle), political speeches, and housed places of worship. Today, however, its a relatively quiet part of the city. We visited two temples, two arches, and two churches here. I thought the most interesting places were the temples because they are actually ancient structures, while the churches were built over ancient temples and altars, and its hard to see what’s left of them now.

The two temples are both related to the area they were found in. The round temple is called Hercules Olivarius (Hercules of Olives) or Hercules Victor. It would have been a very expensive temple to build because it is made of imported Greek marble. At the time it was built during the Republic in late 2nd century BC, marble had not yet been discovered in Italy. It is called Hercules of Olives because it was dedicated by a rich merchant who sold olives (according to an inscription found inside the temple). It survives in such good shape today because it was turned into a Christian church, and because it has been restored and cleaned. Ancient buildings that were used as churches often survive in much better condition than buildings that were left alone, used as housing, or stripped for building materials. During the middle ages and the Renaissance, people believed that it was a temple of Vesta, goddess of the hearth, because it was round and temples of Vesta were always round. However, when restoring the temple, an inscription stating who built the temple and its dedication to Hercules was found inside, confirming its identity. The wooden roof is a modern addition, but that’s what it would most likely have looked like in antiquity. Additionally, there are many other depictions and items dedicated to Hercules in the Forum Boarium because it is said to be the place in Rome where the hero stopped while completing his twelve trials.

The rectangular temple in the Forum Boarium is dedicated to the god Portunus, who is the god of ports. This is fitting, because the Forum Boarium is quite close to the Tiber river, and they would often trade goods in this area that had been shipped on the river. As with the round temple dedicated to Hercules, this temple was used as a church, and has been restored, and they have added a tile roof. It is also from the Republican era of the Roman empire. Unlike the round temple, this particular temple is made of travertine, which is a white stone used extensively in buildings Italy (including modern buildings). Most of the white stone you see in Rome is travertine. You can tell the difference between travertine and marble because travertine is much more porous than marble, and thus often gets dirtier much more quickly.

The temple is in a very typical Italic style. It has a raised porch that would have been used for political speeches and announcements. It has engaged columns built into the walls with free standing ones on the porch. It’s built in a rectangular shape with a pointed roof (although the roof is a restoration). In later times, the travertine was covered in reliefs sculpted out of stucco and painted in order to look like marble. None of these decorations survive today, but we can still get a pretty good idea of what the temple looked like.

There are also two arches that survive in the Forum Boarium, one of which we know a lot about and one which we know very little about. They are called the Arch of the Argentarii and the Arch of Janus/Constantine. The Arch of the Argentarii was built during the reign of Septimius Severus in the 3rd century AD as a tribute from the cattle merchants to the emperor. It survived essentially untouched (except by the elements) because it was incorporated into the side of a church. The main bit of damage done to the arch is actually contemporary with its building. After Caracalla killed his brother Geta (who was murdered while running to his mother and died in her arms), he erased Geta’s image and name from all of the monuments in Rome. The Roman Emperors were savage, but I suppose that’s part of what makes studying ancient Rome so fascinating.

The second arch, the Arch of Janus, is in much worse condition than the other one still standing in the Forum Boarium, although parts of it have been recently restored. The arch is called the arch of Janus because it is one of the few arches with four openings. It is also sometimes called the Arch of Constantine because it was built during the time period of his reign. It actually had the original top on the arch until the 18th century, when they removed it thinking it was a later addition. Modern scholars believe, however, that they unknowingly destroyed the original decoration. The Cloaca Maxima (the main sewer line of ancient Rome) runs directly down the center of the arch (underground of course). That may have significance, or it may be coincidental.

Also in the Forum Boarium are two churches that have ancient ruins under them, and one of them has the Hand of Truth (Roman Holiday anyone?), but you can only see the ancient ruins under one of the churches. Saint Nicola in Carcere is a church is built over three Roman temples, which are currently the foundations/crypt for the church. We got to go down there, and its creepy because they just casually have bones sitting in notch holes in the walls. You could reach out and touch them if you felt so inclined (but please don’t, obviously.) We didn’t get to see the ancient ruins under the other church, Santa Maria in Cosmedin, but it was a beautiful church. It’s one of the few medieval churches left in Rome (many were re-built during the Renaissance and Baroque period) and it has a beautiful floor made of small pieces of marble cut in a geometric pattern. This type of floor was made by the Cosmati brothers, and is popular for churches in Rome from the Medieval period. It is stunning.

Also, outside of this church is “The Hand of Truth” featured in the American movie Roman Holiday. This ancient Roman sewer cap, which depicts the face of the river god Oceanus, has a particularly interesting back story that has origins in the middle ages. Legend has it that if you tell the truth when you stick your hand in the mouth of Oceanus, then you get to keep your hand, but, if you lie, then you lose the hand. We didn’t want to risk losing a hand before we had to write our midterm, so we didn’t test if the myth was true while we there :).

Me testing the Hand of Truth!

The Forum Boarium is a great place to go for a lot of ancient Roman monuments fairly close together, and is one of the quieter places in Rome. It’s also right next to a very good pizza place in Testaccio Market called Casa Manco. It was a fun morning with a delicious lunch after!