I (Ian) have been an inhabitant of Lazio (the region of Roma) for a full four weeks now and even Cathy has been here for more than a week. We (Ian at least) is in his third separate “accommodation” in that time and next week, all being well, we will move onto our fourth and final abode.
Abode #1 was five nights in a single room in the Gambrinus Hotel where I had stayed previously. This room was probably the smallest hotel room in the world but it had all mod cons and was comfortable (albeit one could not yawn and stretch for fear of bursting through the (padded) material wallpaper. A forced eviction on Good Friday saw me move to a much, much larger apartment (abode #2) – but one that just didn’t quite “work”. The bathroom and hot water system from hell, the bed heralded by the Michelin group as the least comfortable in the northern hemisphere, and conveniently situated between the nightclub district of Rome (Testaccio) and where all the happy-go-lucky and drug-fuelled revellers walk past at anytime between midnight and dawn, yelling loudly in Italiano. Not to mention the trattoria beneath.
Evicted from this as well after just two odd weeks, the apartment was taken over by two priests. Perhaps they will not be home much because they will either be in prayer or drug-fuelled and loud at the Testaccio nightspots. Anyway, we plan to, at an appropriate time, press anonymously on their intercom and greet them with “Bless me father, for I have sinned!”. At least in annoying them.
Abode #3 is really sweet and much larger than the Gambrinus – but this in itself is misleading because it packs into its 30 square metres of neatness and renovation – “compactness” – perhaps best exemplified by the shower that ejects itself in the middle of the bathroom floor – just a wall and a curtain on three other sides. We are very happy here. It is truly less than 5 minutes from work, in the suburb of Aventino.
The Circo Massimo is within view of our gate, although we do not see this as we are a semi-basement at the back (with our own private terrace mind you). The magic evaporated slightly when, during the culinary crescendo of dinner on Saturday night, we turned on just too many electrical devices and blew the fuse. Of course, not knowing much about the Aventino fuse conventions, we could not fix that. All we could do, courtesy of the laptop light, led to nought. A desperate Sunday morning call to our landlady, Margheurita, did not achieve much as we had to wait til our doorman, Mossimo, returned on Monday morning. We had worked it out but the fuse box we needed was locked from us in the bowels of this building. An interesting couple of nights and cold showers – sadly our little stock of fresh food in the fridge had to go to the great street bin of Aventino.
We are finalising negotiations on a larger place, still in Aventino, but perhaps in a less highbrow area of it. But it is sweet and Roma leaps out of every ounce of it. If this happens, we move into the currently being renovated abode #4 in just over a week.
Incidentally, Aventino is the “Hamilton” of Rome, so close to the business end and it reeks of history.
We are starting to feel Italian and must be looking a little Italian because Italians are starting to ask us for directions. And, indeed, we are starting to know how to satisfy them.
Ah! Roma! Delightful restaurants, good wine, a city of drop-dead beautiful people in tight jeans – (these are apparently highly uncomfortable as they cause very snooty expressions). We need to master a little more Italian – but Cathy has begun formal lessons and Ian is surrounded by it all day.
It is hard to walk any distance from any of the abodes, without being stunned by the beauty and uniqueness of the eternal city and its inhabitants.
