Laissez les bons temps rouler!

You can take the girl out of Louisiana but you can't take Louisiana out of the girl!

Even in Rome I found a Mardi Gras party! OK...technically I'm not from Louisiana but I've lived there longer than any of the other states I've lived in next to my home state of Michigan so that should count for something. (smile)

Here the Carnevale festivities are more family oriented. You see little kids walking around the city dressed in costumes or parties where there are

elegant Venetian style masks and costumes. I opted
for an elegant butterfly (farfalla) mask. (pic 1) A social group of expats from all over the world had a Mardi Gras party at a local trattoria. The owner was dressed as a Roman Gladiator so I had to take a picture with him. (pic 2)

There was tons of food and dancing (pic 3) with a homemade dessert from Calabria I believe of a fried sweet pasta sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Pictured is an "ancient roman" couple (pic 4) and a picture of my friends Darren and Kelly sans masks. (pic 9) The "Roman" woman was saying how they came to Rome for 6 months and brought their pet dog because "Who would leave their pet for 6 months?" Ouch!! That hurts! Right to the heart. I left my birdies Tiramisu and Mascarpone home with Dave and Mary Ellen. Hopefully, they are showing them pictures of me on the blog so they won't forget me. (sniffle, sniffle)

I had heard of a street being watched over by a cat so I had to venture out to find it. Sure enough, I found her lurking on the corner of one of the buildings on Via Della Gatta. (pic 5)

I snapped this picture of my Italian tutor, Monica, one day after a lesson in my apartment. (pic 6) She is smiling even though she was facing my 3 flights of steep marble stairs. Who needs a stairmaster when you live on the third floor in an old Roman building without an elevator?

After Via Della Gatta I walked down Via del Gesu' to the church Il Gesu'. (pic 7) It was crowded wall to wall with tourists so after a few minutes I


decided it would be best to go on a quiet morning another day. I also spent some time in Chiesa Nuova. Nuova (new) in Rome has a pretty loose meaning. Here they are referring to 1575. (pic 8) Afterwards, I decided to pick up some tasty treats and stopped by Le Delisiosa pasticceria (pastry/cake shop). (pics 11 & 12) I figured if I get a mix of different types of pastry I'm sure to find something I like. (wink)



I'm lucky to be in Rome during Lent as I am able to participate in the long tradition of celebrating Mass in the 40 Stational Churches of Rome. Every day during Lent there is Mass in English at 7am at a different church. We were also privileged to have Archbishop Piero Marini, Titular Archbishop of Martirano, and Master of the Pontifical Liturgical Ceremonies preside at Mass Feb 18th at Santa Susanna.

As I have several family members that work for Kellogg's in my hometown of Battle Creek, MI I had to include a picture of my favorite cereal here...Kellogg's Extra...with chunks of dark chocolate. Of course like most things chocolate here it has hazelnuts too.

Ah...Napoli...

Last week I went on a Spiritual Walking Tour in Napoli (Naples) with a small group of Santa Susanna parishioners (pic 1). Naples is only a ~90 minute train ride from Rome. We spent about 5 hours there, had a nice lunch in Piazza Dante (Dante Alighieri - Poet) where I polished off 4 small chocolate chip cannoli! (pic 5) and then hopped on the train and returned to Rome. I'll have to go back to see more of the city, the coast and visit Pompeii.

I was warned by several Italians to be careful in Naples...no jewelry...no purse...etc. Although Italy is generally very safe you should be extra careful in Naples. The streets are generally narrow and crowded with people going about their business. (Fr. Greg walking the streets in pic 11) It is frequently described as colorful and lively by day and sinister by night. Like many of the cities in Italy, Naples definitely has tons of treasures waiting to be appreciated.

We did walk down a street famous for its Presepii (Nativity) craftsman and builders. You can see Fr. Greg and Monica looking at the figurines in the window on Via San Gregorio Aremeno. (pic 3) Our walk included visits to Piazza Galibaldi, the Duomo of San Gennaro, San Domnico Magiore, the Gesu' Nuovo, Santa Chiara ,San Gregorio Armeno and Cappella Sansevero. You can see more photos on the Santa Susanna website (link to the right) , in the Our Church section and Parish Photos.

I was especially taken by the simple Gothic interior of San Lorenzo Maggiore (unfortunately fotos prohibited). I did capture the courtyard (pic 7) I wished my backyard in Bossier City looked as beautiful. (smile) We also saw the Scavi below. It was a city down there! There was a clothes business where they washed and dyed fabric, a bakery an aerarium/tax collector's office with traces of the iron grill left etc....amazing. The interior of the Duomo was absolutely beautiful with the Holy Spirit window similar to the one in St. Peter's. (pic 10)

The church of Santa Chiara (pic 9) was bombed in World War II but a reconstruction uncovered the original Provencial-Gothic sturcture. There was also a beautiful convent with an Angevin cloister designed by Vaccaro with beautiful majolica tiles. (pic 4) Betty asked me to take a picture with her camera...Hmm..I wonder if she has a blog too! (pic 13) We saw Sammartino's The Dead Christ in the Cappella Sansevero. The marble looks like fabric draped...very beautiful.

I snapped a shot of Antonella and Cecilia walking along the frescos at Santa Chiar. (pic 6) At lunch they were telling me that in the region of Italy one is from they have a favorite dish made with chicken combs (the thing on their head) and spinal columns etc. Mmmm...sounds tasty! Actually, I'm sure it is. She said Americans are very squimish when she talks about the local cuisine. Hey...I'd try it. I always try new things. (note: still haven't found the courage to try tripe yet...but working on it)

We even saw the remains of an ancient fitness center!!! Check out the ruins of the sauna! (pic 8). Yikes! That fitness center is ancient but still has less dust then the equipment in my fitness room at home! (smile)


Pic 2 is of the beautiful obelisk at piazza San Domenico Maggiore. You can see the red and grey palazzo...Naples' official colors. I also heard that they used to bury their dead wrapping the skull and two large leg bones in a cross...hence the pirates skull and crossed bones...or symbol for poison/death. On the train ride in we saw apartments with no windows. They were actually apartments for the dead. The relatives


visit their deceased relatives there. Ah, hum...interesting. I have to say that I was surprised at the skyline as I approached the city...I had to look twice to make sure I was really seeing skyskrapers!

As I only spent a few hours in Napoli, I'll reserve comment until I can give it a proper visit and see more of what it has to offer....

An Evening at the Ballet...

I just spent a lovely evening at the ballet watching Serata Picasso - Massine. The orchestra and corps de ballet of the Teatro dell'Opera, Roma performed three ballets in one night. All the sets were designed in the spirit of Picasso. I didn't take the picture to the left as photography was prohibited but it is of the ballet and dancers I saw that evening. The Teatro dell'Opera's (pictured) fascist era exterior is not indicative of the beautiful red plush, ornate and elegant interior. Outside of the opera house before the start there were little bow-tied little boys and little girls with pulled back hair in buns like future ballerinas. I was watching a group of fireman standing in the courtyard. (No explanation needed...ladies will understand). They all looked up and smiled in the same direction. I

figured some beautiful Italian lady walked by but there was the cutest little toddler dressed up as a fireman (as it is Carnevale here, you see children walking around in costumes etc.) That was the cutest thing! He called out to the real firemen "Ciao!"

I snapped the following picture while walking home through Piazza Della Repubblica at night. It is a very busy area and has a theatrical fountain in the center (Fontana delle Naiadi). It has 4 water nymphs that the city thought were too erotic at first. They put up a fence to hide them but then later removed it.

You would think that I get tired of museums...but I don't! There are so many different museums in Rome I will never tire of them. I recently walked through Villa Bourghese (park) and visited the The Galleria Nazionale D'Arte Moderna (Modern Art Museum) pictured with the red banners in the front. OK..I must say I enjoyed seeing VanGogh's Il Giardiniere and a painting by Claude Monet and some of the beautifully crafted (pre 1950) paintings that looked like photos...but the stuff after 1950 ...

not so much. I did enjoy a wonderful snack at the beautiful Caffe' Delle Arti in the back of the museum. It was large and sunny with a wonderful coffee bar and paintings and had nice patio tables in a little garden setting. (Interior Pictured and then exterior pictured)

Even though my teacher comes to my apartment to give me my individual Italian lessons I go to the school sometimes for cultural activities.

One of the instructors provided a tour of that neighborhood (Monti). After the fall of Rome, the city was concentrated in a small center surrounded by woods etc. That is how that neighborhood named some of the streets. The school is on Frasche (bushes) surrounded by Via del Serpenti (snakes) , Via del Boschetto (woods) etc.

We walked down Via Panisperna. Pilgrims used to walk down this

this street leaving Santa Maria Maggiore heading towards St. Peter's. The locals would give them bread and prosciutto to eat (Pane = Bread/Sperna) hence the name. If you look closely at the picture, at the end of the street you can see The Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore. (Last Picture)

We also walked through Piazza Degli Zingari (Piazza of the Gypsies) that had some charming architecture.

This fountain is found in Piazza Madonna Del Monti. It is a quaint little square that is frequently used in movies. It has one of the fountains around Rome that is named after the how it looks like a nose (nasone). I was with a young lady from Australia and she was astounded that the city allows the fountains to run continually as they have to work to conserve water in her home country.

OK, I can't end this entry without discussing food of course. Although Rome doesn't have a collection of ethnic restaurants to speak of, I had heard that there was a pretty good Indian take out spot. I found it in a neighborhood near the Termini train station....like any big city you have

to remain cautious in the area around Rome's train station. It was actually very good. Some of the curry was a little too spicy for me but I couldn't stop eating it it was so tasty. Funny little tidbit...I was looking up a word in my Italian/English dictionary and guess what was in there?!? "Diet Coke" (Coca Light). It is interesting how some things find their way in our culture. What is even more interesting is that the dictionary is for the English spoken in Great Britain. Oh, in case you weren't aware...I guess we speak "American" and not really "English". (wink)

I also did manage to find my way to eating at Hard Rock Cafe. You can't explain to your other expat, non-American, friends that it really isn't cool for an American to eat at Hard Rock Cafe when they should be trying to get the real Italian dining experience...but I didn't protest too hard because I had heard that they had some tasty chocolate cake there. The ceiling had a fresco on the ceiling of little angles playing rock music. The video screen was playing a U2 song. Above the door was "Break on through to the other side" The Doors. All the guitars hanging up reminded me of my Fender Stratocaster I left back in the States in my living room. I had been so busy with my job I hadn't played it for about 5 years. Mental note: Take time to play your guitar!!!

I received a little love from home today. My #1 Valentine sent me a Valentine's Day care package. Thanks MOM!! I wasn't surprised. (smile) Her care packages are legendary. I still have friends from Michigan State U (undergrad), U of New Haven and Purdue U (Grad Schools) and GE co-workers in Chicago and Atlanta talking about them. I'm 35 and still receive care packages throughout the year....I LOVE IT!!! But Mom....You can leave out the Wedding and Birth Announcements from the local newspaper....I get the hint! (smile)

Happy Valentine's Day all! Un Bacio! (a kiss!)

Al sole...(In the sunshine...)

While out walking one day I heard music and saw a crowd of people in Piazza Del Qurinale and went to check it out. This square has the Palazzo Del Quirinale, a palace that is the seat of the presidency of the Italian Republic. I lucked upon some sort of procession. The soldiers/officers were marching in formation while their band played marching songs.

Afterwards, I walked to the Museo Nazionale Delle Paste Alimentari. A museum dedicated to Italy's best-loved and best-known food... The Pasta Musuem! A museum after my own heart! I took an audio guided tour that traced the history and evolution of pasta. Unfortunately, there was no tasty sample of the finished product waiting at the end of the tour.


My favorite exhibit was a painting with the words "200 gr. di pasta con un cucchaio d'olio ed un pugno di fagioli, oppure 200gr. di pasta con olio e formaggio, in qualsiasi parte del mondo ad un costo di circa L1000 al giorno sono sufficienti per la vita di una persona". It says "200 grams of pasta with a spoonful of oil and handful of beans, or 200 grams of pasta with oil and cheese, in any part of the world at a cost of about 1000 Lira (about 50cents)
a day is sufficient for the life of a person.


Unfortunately, with all the famine across the world this painting is still relevant today.

I then walked to the Giardino Del Quirinale (Park - pictured) to rest, write in my journal and people watch while I waited for Sant'Andrea Al Quirinale church to reopen for the afternoon. Sant' Andrea is said to be Bernini's favorite church. He asked to be taken there when he was near death.


It was absoulutely beautiful. It has a elliptical central hall with 8 small chapels on the sides. Sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows illuminate the church and side chaples, beautiful rose colored marble and gold and stucco. There was also a beautiful crucifix where for some reason I thought to light a candle and say a special prayer for a special person I unfortunately had not been able to meet in this life. The main chapel and dome are pictured.

On my way home I stopped at Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio church (last picture) at the Trevi Fountain. The fountain was completely packed but the church was absolutely empty....and peaceful.

I went home and read the paper while snacking on Nutella and toast. The photo gallery portion of the paper had one large color picture. It was a photo of the dinasaur in front of Chicago's Field Musuem dressed in a Chicago Bears football jersey...number 54. Even Rome is getting into the Superbowl spirit!