Everyday life as a Roman

So I know yesterday may not have been as thrilling or awesome as some other days have been, but I'm not on vacation, as much as the pictures may proclaim I am. I've got school, homework, and commutes, they all just take place in Rome.

Which is really, really cool.

Last night we went out to dinner as a program, and I thought it'd be just a dish or two and away we'd go, but oh no, we had 4 courses, with water included (hey, that may not sound like much, but water is expensive in restaurants here since they only serve it out of a bottle) and a glass of wine. I mean, I ate a TON. We had bread and olive oil, followed by a Rigatoni con panna di pomodoro (or tomato sauce) and parmigiana, then it was pork and salad for the main course, finishing with Tiramisu. And it was all included, no charge, so hey, can't complain. It was delicious and totally filling.

And in fact, I've lost near 10 pounds since I've arrived, I know it's all the walking and constant sweating, but still, I eat HUGE portions and don't gain weight? Good by me!

But one of the best parts was the walk back. We walked back the 40 minutes to our apartment at 10:30 and it was gorgeous out, about 75 and just lit up like you could only imagine. The Tiber was gorgeous, and I couldn't get a good enough picture of St. Pietros, but I did take a picture on the Tiber that gives a clue of how cool it looked.

Anyway, today was school again, and I'm learning more and more Italian as I go along. I decided for today's blog to chronicle two-thirds of the shopping for food experience here in Roma, and that's the Supermarket and the more authentic feeling market store (part three is the open-air market, where we go tomorrow). In Italy (and Europe in general), electricity is very expensive, so the freezer section is very, very small, if existant whatsoever. The market doesn't tend to have it at all, and instead, they just have a very small, workers-accessible case only for chilled things. The market has tons of different noodles, drinks, grains, cheeses, and meats, which are really fun to just look at sometimes. The selection is much higher in these stores--but so are the prices. I mean, it's not a total rip-off, but it's still more expensive for even the same product. To the left, enlarge the picture to see just a glimpse of the insanely packed walls, it's pretty cool to just take it all in.

Both the standard, community market and the Supermarkets both are very compact in their spaces since all of the buildings are old and they cannot remodel them to have huge space, but the cardinal difference outside of the prices, selection, and size is the friendliness of the people. The marketplace is friendly, and it's rude not to greet each other when you walk in. Today I said Buongiorno to the lady at the counter and asked "come stai?" which means simply "how are you?" and she returned the question and I was absolutely beeming over my improved Italian.

The Supermarket people, however, are jerks.

This is notorious in Italy. They don't like their job, and it's totally culturally acceptable for them to be unhelpful, frosty, and generally just pissy. They really don't help with anything for the most part (the cashiers, anyway. The department people are a bit more friendly). But their stores work like a maze. I still can't get over how tigh the aisles are and how compact the store is, but it just winds around corners and everything to fit more in to a smaller space.

In other words, it's the polar opposite of a Fred Meyer's or a Ralph's. Todi's is just winding, cheaper, and more intimidating in many ways. I shop there more for the discounts and the proximity to my apartment (it's probably 20% cheaper and 5 minutes closer, or 10 minutes round trip). They have a cheese section that still makes me smile, however, along with a produce section and store-brand sodas that are much, much cheaper (try 1.50 euro per gallon on for size, yeahhh).

But anyway, today--still beaming from my recent Italian foray at the market--I tried to do the same thing with the lady at Todi's. I came up to the register, she began ringing me up (they don't acknowledge you) and I said "salve, come stai?" and she just looked at me like I was lower than trash and went back to stacking my groceries (they don't bag for you in Europe) and not saying anything until she asked if I had more exact change.

But in Italy, as in most places, the saying is true: you get what you pay for. It's a lifestyle here. I mean, people feel entitled to treat you like crap at Todi's since you're not paying as much. The market appreciates your business and they expect you to converse a bit with them, but you pay a bit more.

Things you learn living in places. Who'd have guessed?

Anyway, hopefully tomorrow with the open air market will provide some more excitement, and until then, as always,

Ciao.