Our Apartment

So, I think that delicious pizza I had a few nights ago finally caught up with me...or Stella rather. Leon didn't go to bed again last night because he took too long of a nap (I was out shopping and was supposed to wake him up when I got back...which was supposed to be a lot earlier) and he said that Stella was crying about every 10-15 minutes. I just remember waking up at 2:30 feeling like instead of sleeping, I had be letting multiple buses hit me.

So I'm exhausted this morning and don't know if I have any energy to leave the apartment. Which makes this a good day to let you in to our lovely little abode.

 The front entry

The front door...Amazing! I actually really like the entrance way. It has a perfect spot for what we've already started to pile there...The backpack, grocery roller cart, a few bags and shoes. And note the bag of trash. Very important.

If you walk straight in from the front door, the bathroom is on your right. Complete with a bidet. For you non-Europeans, here's the definition of a bidet: A bidet is a low-mounted plumbing fixture or type of sink intended for washing the genitalia, inner buttocks, and anus. Lovely, isn't it! My definition is a sink that is impossible to keep children out of  and a great place to lose your keys.

The big buttons on the wall about the toilet are for flushing. I actually find the flushing fascinating. It kind of reminds me of a bubbling hot tub. With some obvious differences. You can sort of see that our over-sized (awesome!) bath towels have the Vatican emblem on it. In the top left corner, you can see the smallest white corner. That's a strategically placed cabinet for smacking your head into when standing up from the toilet. And in the right corner is a small enclosed shower.

Across from the shower is the sink. Low enough for Emma to have a good time in it. I also really like that she can see herself in the mirror, so that every time I've sent her in to wash the peanut butter off of her face, she actually comes back perfectly clean. 

Walking straight from the toilet is a hallway. On the left is the kitchen. Complete with an ity-bity washer, dryer (left of fridge), stove, and fridge. Seriously, I've never seen appliances so small. These people are clearly not living the American dream. The cabinets look plain white, but if you look at the slightly reflected part above the sink, you'll see they're shiny with matte stripes. Pretty cute.

Speaking of pretty cute...

Stella always wins that one. Especially when eating.

Oh yeah! I really cool element in the kitchen is the dish rack directly above the sink. You've seen the kind where the plates and bowls are stacked vertically like a bookshelf. Well this one has a metal grate beneath that so you can put the plates and bowls in dripping wet. You can place cups and silverware on the tray and they all just drip into the sink to dry! That's the only reason why there are no dishes on the counters in these pictures. :)

Moving on. Then there's the cute team, in the living room

Here's Stella drawing on the living room floor. Totally at home.

 and another, looking out on the small enclosed patio. Through it you can see the washer in the kitchen, so you can walk completely around.

Then the floor of the girls' room...already broken in...

Another shot of a messy girls' room...

We stole the twin bed mattress to be the baby bed next to our bed.

Here's Emma in day 2 or 3 of jet lag in her room.

And one of the coolest features is the larger patio...

A little bare, but will be awesome with a bunch of plants

Looking up from there...

See! A tree!

Then the other corner...

Ooooo...chairs!

And up from that view...

Very Roman arches I'm sure.

Now you know the worst its going to look like when you visit. Hopefully we'll be more settled in soon. And by that, I mean we'll be surrounded by more of our familiar crap. :) I mean personal belongings.


Peace!

Day 5- Church and The Pope

Today we went to church on the college grounds. It was actually really handy because at quarter of 10 the bells started ringing and I started running around finding shoes and ran out the door to mass, just really a few steps down the hall and up a flight. Very convenient. However, it did feel a little weird being the only spot of color in a sea of black clerics. We sat in the back and I couldn't help but think that we were in some sci-fi movie and had been invaded by some strange people. Men, actually. Just a man invasion. So, ya, that was weird.

Then, to the Pope! Because we were walking with all the seminarians we saw lots of people standing by with their Iphones pointing at us in the bus tunnel and on the streets. They must have thought it was an invasion too.  We walked to St. Peter's Square and gathered thousands of other people waiting in the blistering sun to hear the noonday Angelus and address. No, no pictures today. We couldn't see much of him anyway. He was just a couple centimeters high in the top window. Of what was said in Italian, I picked out that Jesus is the door to heaven. In case you wanted a synopsis. That probably covered it, I'm sure.

Desperate for some food we headed out into the crowd in no particular direction for food. Every other time we walked we passed by a ton of food places. Go figure, when we're starving in the heat of the afternoon with no water we walk right into the high end fashion street. We could have bought some swimsuits for 85 Euros, plenty of ties, and gotten our hair cut...but no food! We couldn't believe it. So, not quite faint yet (fortunately) we went all the way back to the touristy sandwich cart in the middle of St. Peter's Square and bought a bland over-priced ham and cheese "pizza" (it was a panini, really). We shrugged it off and I kept dreaming of one of the awesome sandwiches I saw the night before at a bar for half the price....mmmm roasted red peppers and lots of color :) 

Then we went home and napped. Cooked dinner with some fried potatoes, fried breaded chicken and spinach patties (pre-made and easy!) and carrots. Then after researching strollers for way to long we went back on the town for more exploring. And I remembered my camera this time! See!

My Bella Stella in front of an awesome church.
We stepped in and it was actually just finishing up mass.
It had automatic glass doors, which  was surprising considering its age of construction. 

Trying to figure out where to go.
"Um dad. I think I just wet my pants"

In front of some outside diners

A deserted alley...makes for good running for little legs

A Cellist performing in the Pantheon.
Great acoustics!

After exploring and grabbing gelato we walked back home. By the end of it, there was a small fraile looking gray haired woman who was walking about 10 times faster than me. Of course she didn't have a baby on her back.

Day 4- Grocery Shopping and Pizza

The girls and I did our first shopping excursion to the Carrefour Market on Via Di Fornaci all by ourselves. I was really excited just to get more food into the apartment not necessarily for the adventure. In fact, the adventuring part made me a little sick.( If you didn't already know that I'm pregnant with baby #3, then maybe that would help explain things. Yup! Vatican citizen come March!) ...anywhoo....Foooooood. Yeeess. (I'm definitely pregnant.)  I've been so hungry the past few days and jet-lagged that I've barely been able to keep myself together. And the chicken we brought home a few days ago was cooked without salt. In unsalted butter. Yuk. I need sauce! I can't live like this! I thought it very ironic that in the first few days of moving to Rome, city of food, I've been starving. 

So I had Stella on my back in the Ergo, Emma in one hand, and the borrowed wheely grocery cart in the other hand. (Where can I get one of these?!) After quite a lengthy walk (at a toddlers pace of course) we got to the grocery store. I basically abandoned my list. I didn't want to look too confused and I really had to focus on what the food said. Kilos? Crap. I definitely have no idea how much that is! I wanted to order a bunch of cured meats at the Deli but not knowing the language held me up a bit. I settled the prepackaged section that didn't require me to say anything.( Don't judge, I only had a month to leave the country and that didn't give me very much time to learn the language. I'm working on it.) 

I got fruit and sauce and bread and meat and more sauce and q-tips and plastic wrap and tupperware and a little Swiss chocolate. Plus other stuff. It was a pretty successful trip. Not flawless of course. Stella did kick a bottle of Limoncello on the floor,shattering it, and frustrating the Italian stocker lady. Whoops! hehe. I held back my desire to like the Limoncello off my hand after I handed the broken bottle to her. I didn't even know how to say sorry. But I do know. In case I pull another bull in the china shop, I'll just back out slowly with wildly kicking toddler legs at my side saying "Mi dispiace! Mi dispace!" Exit, then run like hell. 

With the walk and getting a little lost and the way back, the whole trip was about 2 hours and 74 euros ($99). It exhausted everyone except Stella who slept on the way back. In fact some lady stopped and said she was concerned that my baby head was going to fall off or something. I was like, "it's ok. she sleeps like this all the time". It's like upward dog with jawls flapping in the wind, according to some obscure yoga pose. But being very persistent, and well-intentioned I decided to humor her and put on the head strap for Stella.

***

Skip to this evening after naps... We went out and saw Piazza Navona. 1st Piazza! Very cool. Saw tons of art (briefly), the sidewalk spraypaint artists, a string trio, a lady playing a purple harp, and of course the very cool fountain. Lots and lots of food out in the streets. And then....Pizza! Bruchetta! Jerusalem Articokes! So yummy. Finally, I meal I can smile at. :) 

Excitement

So a few words from the ma'am... I mean man of the house...

What I really should be doing at 10pm is lying in bed trying to shake off the jet lag...

Do you honestly expect me to be doing that when Fr. Pierre Paul just wined and dined me (really is was beered and dined, but wined sounds better), took me to his office in the sacristy of St. Peter's Basilica, and chatted about chant, composition and the church for a few hours and then took me home by way of a few Swiss Guard check-points?  I mean... somebody pinch me... or maybe smack me over the head with a hot iron. Fr. Pierre has been in Rome for 35 years. He's a wealth of information, knowledge, very kind and welcoming, and a fine musician to boot. We're not alone.  Not that we were, but it's nice to have such warm people willing to welcome the stranger.

Anyhow, life is crazy. Rome is beautiful. My wife and children are my only link to reality and sanity. We're in for a ride and I can't wait! Maybe I'll write more later... If my wife lets me. After all, this is her blog.

Just thought you should know I'm still here:)

Day 2- New Pots and No Homeschooling

Today we got a late start, around 10 ish. We had some oranges, grapes, almonds and cereal since our pots and pans hadn't arrived yet and cooking was yet impossible. Leon set off for his first morning prayer with the new men, played a few things and called it good. Then he came back and we had to meet with some secretary and the police. But the secretary was out and it turned out we didn't need to see the police for whatever it was anyway, which was good by me. So we signed a few papers and then went on our way to the Economo's office. At this time in the afternoon I was starting to feel a little weak and woosey for lack of food/water and had to give Leon Stella so that I didn't drop her.

Once in the office we made our request for pots and pans so we could cook our chicken. We made small talk with one of the ladies there.She told us that there was a good school nearby and asked if we had figured out which one we were going to use. I noted that Emma was only 2 and half so we had a little time before we had to think about that. Then, grateful to have someone to small talk with I mentioned that we were planning to home-school. I did hesitate for a minute before I mentioned this, wondering if it would be well received. It wasn't. Even though she didn't know us and had been very polite up to this point she became very forceful with her opinions of home-school, her bad experience with anyone home-schooled and her belief that "socializing" children was very, very important. I restrained my comments like, "Of course, we do too. It's not like we would stay in the home for 12 years!" She did note that even though it is big in the United States it wasn't here. Very comforting. Then I started feeling self-conscious that Emma hadn't spoken a word to her. Not that she should have, she's not even three and  rightfully shy. I haven't started homeschooling yet really, so its not my fault. ;) After the tirade we went home and I cried. I was a little on edge, hungry, tired and really haven't spoken to anyone here yet. What a welcome. 

But after the pots arrived and pretending I spoke Italian to the maintenance guy, we ate and napped and everyone felt better. The welcome dinner was at 6 and we had a much more pleasant time there. The girls were delightful. Stella kept trying to give handfuls of spaghetti to the priest next to us and pointing to one of them across the table. Emma was very well behaved and managed to make some small talk too. Although it was at the volume a little bird's. The food was delicious, the dessert was yummy and nobody melted down or even required a diaper change. A perfect evening! It went very far to erasing the afternoon's unpleasant encounter. Just never mention homeschooling again. 

Day 1 - Traveling

Scaling the slanty wall was fortunately impossible.
But the girls looked out at the Airplanes anyway while we waited.

See how much we love waiting in the airport! We're so energized!

***
It sort of feels like I poured sand in my eyeballs, but other than that I’m feeling great! (I guess that’s how 6 hours of time change and an all-nighter feel) I am very happy to report that the traveling went beautifully for everyone. I admit I was a little worried about how it would turn out but we really couldn’t have asked for a much better run!

Pics from the Pontifical North American College...
not all completely relative to this post :)

The first flight we hardly had to use our bag of goodies because each seat had an individual touch screen.  While waiting to take off we decided that we would like to try to hold off on all entertainment for the evening. But as a whole 5 minutes passed, we completely forgot about that resolution and started clicking away. Ok, it wasn’t that quick but it kind of felt like it.  Emma eventually watched most of Rio and I sort of watched something about an art curator getting revenge. Colin Firth and Cameron Diaz, what can I say? Stella was happily poking the screens and making eyes at passengers in her charming way.

Anyway, the kids took a little nap on the first flight, enough to give them 500 times more energy than us. Our layover was quick and painless, just enough time to grab some fruit and pastries and get on the “Knee-Slammer 6000.” No screens, pillows, blankets, or leg room, but it got the job done. Our first flight was 20 minutes shy of 6 hours and the second, only 3  hours. Although by that time, my legs were really starting to hurt, especially since the guy in front of me was fully reclined. To cross my legs or simply bring my leg in front of me I shook his chair enough to make him repeatedly turn around but I didn’t really care. I was too exhausted.  I really had to lift my chin high to open my eyes on this flight. The girls were a bit messier too, but I realized that I was too tired to get stressed out about any crying either.

When we got off the flight the girls and I sat and waited for Leon to get the baggage. Emma was a slobbering mess about this because she reeeeeaaalllly wanted  daddy. It was fun being stared at by everyone walking by…”What’s with that kid?” And we forgot to change her diaper in the plane so she was sitting in a puddle of her own mess with drenched pants that left a nice big spot on the front of his shirt. “Oh, hello new boss! Don’t mind the urine on my shirt! We usually are hygienic!” It wasn’t that bad. But we did eventually  find the “lost” backpack that was in a different location that they had told us to pick it up at, find Fr. Belsole, the driver and our way to our new home.

The apartment brought a few happy tears to my eyes, maybe from relief that it was a lot cuter than the pictures. Maybe just the emotionality of having a “home” in Rome.  I think I still feel like we’ve gone back to college or are just on vacation…completely outside of our actual college or vacation experience.

One thing I am a little disappointed in is just that it’s not as furnished as they said it was. It’s not really a problem, but I might have been able to bring a few things to make it more cozy or at least be prepared with a plan of action. There are no pots and pans, baking trays or other bakeware. There are 4 large plates, 6 bowls, and a few smaller plates but no mixing bowls, wooden spoons, sieves, peelers, etc. It really ends at the plates, bowls, a few cups and silverware. Sooooo, I guess I need to go shopping! And we’ll probably be eating out tonight. Oh darn. 

One Consulate Meeting Down, One to go!

On July 31st at the crack of dawn we got the entire family up to be out the door by 6 am. We went over all our paperwork and brought everything with us. We brought snack and toys. And then we drove to Boston. Kids were good, sleeping for the first hour or so and happy after that. Can't complain. Not having an official appointment time we weren't sure if we were supposed to be there at 9 am prompt or just anytime from then until noon. As it was, we got there at about 9:20 am. We found the office and waited for about 20 minutes before we realized that we hadn't actually brought everything. We forgot the passport photos on the table at home. Not wasting time, we left the building and went around the block to the local post office where a nice Asian man took our pictures again for about double what we originally paid at Rite Aid. No biggie. Now we had our pictures.

We return to the consulate and start the waiting over again. The room is about 10'x 14' with 5 rows of 5 chairs with table on the side and a big glass wall at the end where the 2 workers speak to you through a hole in the glass. It's what I call very cozy and child friendly. By the grace of God alone (and some of the candy in my purse, which may have only make things worse) we waited without making all the surrounding people nervous, uncomfortable, or angry. In fact Stella was really making friends fast when our turn was finally called and she was hanging out in the front.

The short of it, was that it didn't work. We gave them the exact form we were told to bring, had all supporting documents, photocopies, and fresh pictures for the Visas. Blah blah blah. I wasn't surprised that it didn't work, in fact I was half expecting to need to make another trip. Their people had to talk to our people and figure out the details. The good news is that we got a call from the consulate today and they said they figured it out. Turns out we have a special exemption under The Holy See. So basically, we have an in with the Pope. Yup, that's right. Si conosco la Papa ....or something like that.

Best news of all...we don't have to bring the kids this time. We go in on the 7th. I call that a date. :)