Rome: Day 1

Upon our arrival in Rome, we first went to our hostel - the YWCA UCDG - to get rid of our bags and prepare for our first afternoon. We were surprised to find a market that spanned the block of via Cesare Balbo. People selling fresh fruits, knockoff Gucci handbags, lacy bras, and silver costume jewelry covered the street and piles of shoeboxes and garbage bags spilled over the sidewalks. Our first stop was to see the Fontana di Trevi, where we took our first photos of the coin toss and the tacky souvenir stands in front of the enormous fountain.
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Our first gelato was at an old family-owned place called Giolitti. In the entryway, there were little chocolate cookies and gellied fruits. The line stretched from the cash register to the ice cream counter, where people were calling out their orders as if at a fish market: "visciola, cocco e stracciatella!" My daring combo turned out quite delicious, with bits of fresh cherry and crackly chocolate swirled together with flakes of coconut and cream.
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We took a stroll through the Jewish ghetto after stopping at Campo dei Fiori and Piazza Navona, where a man escaped from a straightjacket and chains and I danced to a musician's lovely guitar music.
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History of Giordano Bruno
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Out of sheer convenience, Viv and Emma let me kow that they would be in Rome until Friday, when they were taking their trip to Tuscany. Viv’s campus happened to be in the Jewish ghetto (where we were visiting that evening). We managed to get in contact through a series of very expensive sms. We met up at the Bruno Monument and rejoined the group to have our first pizza, where I took full advantage of the anchovies.

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The reunion was nice albeit short. It was comforting, as always, to be reminded how close I am to loved ones despite being in Europe. I am also looking forward to when Viv comes to visit Lausanne after her stay in Rome.

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When dinner was over, a few of us went to a café for drinks - the first time I tried a limoncello, which, I must say, could use a little less sugar. We shared a few laughs, Swiss jokes, and a fair share of « C’est pas évident » and « Serais étonné, » which continued to cause disruptive laughter for the rest of the trip.