Not all who wander are lost

(But some definitely, definitely are.)

I have arrived in Roma! 'Tis a beautiful and silly place, where significant pieces of its culture are wine and glaring at people. I am at home already. Literally, I am at home now. It's funny that I'm thinking of my apartment as home, when I only unpacked my stuff yesterday. But then, home isn't always really a place, instead a feeling.

So, what's with the Tolkien quote for a title and the mildly passive aggressive parenthetical? I'm sure you're asking. Well, it's probably not passive aggressive if you're referring to yourself. Today was quite an adventure. It started at the cafe next door to my building for a morning pastry and espresso because it's never too early to start doing as the Romans do. Then, to the tram station for my first foray into Rome's public transportation. Everything went so well despite me not knowing what the stations were, really, but that's where the effortless 'everything's just falling into place in my life' moment ends.

I found the bus stop that was to get me to the Study Center, and sure, I'd be there very early but I figured I'd roam around exploring and grab something to eat before our meeting at 1. How wrong I was. The bus stop was for the right line but going the wrong way. Eventually, I realize this and get off. I buy a map because I also realize that I clearly need one. Unfortunately, Rome has two piazzas with the same name as where the Study Center is and this particular map only has one. And not the one where I am supposed to be. I do not know this at the time and I go there. Something is clearly not right when I am wandering (and lost) around Villa Borghese. My school cannot be here.

It's not. And I am very, very late to the meeting despite giving myself around 3 hours to get there. But eventually, I do get there when they're on a break so I recognize my housemates. (thank god for that, or else I'd probably still be looking for the damn place) Google maps and I estimate I walked around 8 km today (about 5 miles for those of you not joining me in the metric system) and I saw almost the entireties of the Piazza Venezia and Piazza del Popolo. And I have the blisters to prove it. While my classmates were learning the rules of the road of the city of Rome, I put the keys in the ignition and did not read the manual. Typical.

Now, I am going to wander on over to the supermarket, and - probably - not get lost. After that, 'Monty Python's Flying Circus' and a 2 euro bottle of red calls out to me. Old habits die hard, even in a city of surprises.

the view from the balconies of my room and kitchen, respectively