Rome-A Survival Guide

For the last few days I have been a guest of Italy's lovely capital city and it has been very wonderful to me. (Blog post to follow soon!) However, there are some things that I wish I had known before I left and some things that I'm glad I prepared for, so I thought I would share them all with you in case you are intrepid wanderers looking to visit Rome too someday.

Pack Well. Rome in the summer is HOT. Like 2 showers a day hot, because it is impossible not to get incredibly sticky and sweaty unless you stay in hugging the air conditioning unit, so pack accordingly. If you have the space, bring double the amount of clothes than days you're going. If this isn't possible, at least bring extra undies and T-shirts! You won't need jumpers or jeans either-pack light!* (Did I mention it was HOT?) Suncream and good shoes for walking in are also essential, plus plasters for when your shoes rub in the heat. (even the most reliable of sandals become blister-makers, believe me!) Antibac hand gel and a couple of packs of tissues are also a must have for when the loos aren't quite up to scratch.

Water. It goes without saying that you will need to drink lots of it, but the street vendors will sting you for anything from €2-€4 for a 500ml bottle. My personal solution was to buy a large 1L bottle from the airport (after passing through security, obviously) and then an even bigger bottle from the (wonderful) DeSpar supermarket once we got to Italy (I got a 2L bottle for only €0.24!) and then decant from one into the other. Lots of the bigger attractions have drinking fountains so you can fill up with deliciously cold water throughout the day, so only buy from street vendors when you have to (or when your water is just too unpleasantly warm!) and you'll save a fortune.

Do Your Research. You'll save a lot of time standing in a queue if you buy your attraction tickets beforehand. We got Vatican tickets online before we went and bought Colosseum tickets at an information desk near the main Termini train station. It might cost you a little more but it's worth it to be able to walk straight past the massive lines. We also saved money by getting the bus from the airport to Rome, rather than the train which was our original choice. (€8 for a return vs €14 each way to save about 20 minutes!).
The times that you visit places can make a lot of difference to your experience as well. When we arrived in the Vatican City at about 11am, the queue for St. Peter's Basilica was rather long-I estimate we would have been standing there in the midday sun for at least an hour if not longer. When we returned after our visit to the Vatican Museums at about 4.30, we queued for no more than 15 minutes.
Have a read around on the internet before you go, there's plenty of good advice out there.

Buy a sunshade/hat!

Modelled beautifully by Rara, I think you'll agree

If, like me, you don't like being in the direct sunlight, one of these sun-umbrellas is an ideal purchase just to fend off the worst of the rays. You can get them everywhere-look for guys selling them around all the attractions for about  €5 and they're well worth the investment!

Take Enough Money! Rome has a reputation for being expensive but it probably isn't any more so than any other capital city for the basics. I didn't spend more than  €13 on a meal (not including the gelato which ranged from  €2- €5) and the food was really gooood for that price. Where the expense comes in is the attractions-you have to pay to get into most of the larger ones and each is about  €20. If you're planning on being a proper tourist and doing everything then make sure you budget accordingly. On the other hand, you could definitely do Rome on a shoestring-it's not too big to walk around as long as you don't mind the trek. Also, some of the attractions are free and definitely well worth a visit (eg St. Peter's and the Pantheon-Italy knows how to do spectacular churches!). Also, always make sure that you ask the price of things first before  you do something-there's many a hidden cost! We had some pictures taken outside the Colosseum with some Romans which cost us  €10 each for 2 photos and we didn't know until afterwards when they charged us! There is often a small ( €1) charge to sit at a table at a restaurant, so if you aren't getting a full meal it might be cheaper to take it away and eat as you wander. 

Traffic! 

I think they make the red lights bigger to make sure people take notice of them.
No, really!

You know all those stereotypes about Italian driving you've heard? Well they exist for a reason, because they are true! Crossing the road in Italy means taking your life into your hands and it's pretty terrifying. Be very aware of traffic and be prepared to move quickly because they won't slow down for you unless they absolutely have to! Also, here's a heads up: just because there is a green man doesn't mean that all the traffic lights will be on red. Quite often, the turn into the road you are on will also be on green so traffic might still be coming at you even when you have the right to cross.

Be Assertive. Italians may come across as rather pushy to us un-confrontational British fok, and will try to sweep you into every restaurant you pass or sell you their goods when you walk past/(in most cases) around them. Don't be afraid to assert yourself a little and firmly say no before carrying on your merry way. They won't mind, and if they do then you're never going to see them again, so don't feel too guilty!

Finally, have lots of fun! Rome really is a beautiful city and there's lots to see and do there so just explore and see for yourself. Eat lots of gelato and throw a coin into the Trevi Fountain to guarantee your return. Say hello for me, too!

-Jenni-

P.S Sorry Brits. No-one in Italy seems to understand how to queue or the definition of 'personal space'. You're just going to have to grit your teeth, stiffen that upper lip and tut your way through it I'm afraid!

*NB Some of the churches, esp St. Peter's have a strict dress code and will turn you away if you are dressed inappropriately. Make sure you can cover your shoulders and knees (men and ladies alike!) either with what you wear or with scarves etc. Also ladies, make sure you're not too revealing cleavage-wise!

A Rather Nice Idea...

I'm calling this an 'Experiment in Social Media' because I don't know if I have enough followers/people reading my blog to make it work. We shall have to wait and see...

The internet has become a very useful tool in helping people keep in touch with one another nowadays-you can fire off an email to someone or poke them on Facebook without even having to put down your sandwich. Long gone are the days where communication was a tedious business involving weeks of waiting before you got a reply to your letter, now we can send a text message and get the response within the same minute. And it's all rather marvellous. Except. Except for the fact that getting a text or an email isn't quite the same as having a letter land on your doorstep, full of excitement and possibility. And let's face it, everyone loves getting post that isn't just another bill or an ad campaign by a company trying to sell you broadband (irony, anyone?), and it's a sad fact that this age-old form of communication is dying out. SO. Here's what I propose: Inspired by the wonderful Jen Campbell, an author who recently sent out postcards to some of her fans to celebrate her new poetry collection*, the other day I went to a Paperchase and picked up some lovely postcards.

Look, there they are, in all their lovely postcardyness

Here's where you come in. If you are reading this, and like getting in real life letters and you want me to send you a lovely postcard, then I WILL. Send me your name and address to circlethinker@gmail.com and I will post them out-anywhere in the world! (NB-I have 10 postcards, so obviously they will only go to the first 10 people. If there are more than 10 then I will definitely consider doing this again, and if not the postcards will go into my collection instead!) I can't promise you what I will write on them yet, but it will probably be some of my favourite quotes or song lyrics, or if you're really lucky, some waffle from me. Whether I know you (hello!) or whether I don't (Hello!) if you fancy getting something nice in the post then you know what you have to do. Who knows, maybe this might inspire you to post out some love to people too?

Now to sit back and see if this works...

-Jenni-

P.S 2 of the cards are a smidge on the naughty side so if you would prefer not to get one of these, just mention it somewhere!


*I got one of them, and it was really rather lovely!

Feeling Ugly? There's An Op For That!

Source HERE

Cosmetic surgery, as far as I am concerned, shouldn't really be allowed. I mean Doctors should actually be banned from performing it, and certainly shouldn't be allowed to make a fuck-tonne of money from essentially exploiting people's insecurities. To clarify, I don't think plastic surgery as a whole is an evil business, I completely recognise the need for it to exist to allow people to have re-constructive surgeries, corrective surgeries and a whole spectrum of other, completely valid reasons requiring a plastic surgeon. The (MASSIVE) part that I have a problem with is the large proportion of operations to "fix a problem" that doesn't need fixing. People who have plastic surgery for the sake of having plastic surgery; doctors who willingly pump poisons into their clients' foreheads, women who want to have the biggest boobs in the world.
 I think that there is far too much weight placed on surgery as being a "quick-fix" and as being the solution to all your insecurities. Too fat? Gastric band. Lost the weight too quickly? We'll slice off all that unsightly flabby skin. Don't like the shape of your nose? Let me just take a chisel to it, and you'll be right as rain in 6 weeks time. Surgery is a HUGE undertaking, it's not something to flippantly decide on whilst sitting in the hairdressers one day. It's not a quick fix and it is certainly not the solution to all your unhappiness. There's a growing trend in today's society that says if there is something you aren't happy with, you simply change the thing. I personally think that if there's something you aren't happy with you should first try to change the way you think about the thing. (For example, see my post about feeling beautiful in yourself). I think if someone wants to drastically change their body by undergoing cosmetic surgery then they should have to undergo a rigorous course of counselling and therapy beforehand. Like each procedure should come with a mandatory 6-12 month course of trying to make people feel better about themselves before they have it done, with the aim of them not getting it done at all.*
All cosmetic surgery leads to is a desire for a perfection that can never be achieved. How many people stop at just one procedure? How many in actual fact go home and go "OK, great, now my boobs are perfect but the rest of me just doesn't add up. I think it'll be a tummy tuck next." People make cosmetic surgery shopping lists and then spend a fortune getting them all done because they think it will make them feel beautiful. Feeling beautiful does not come from being surgically crafted into societies' idea of perfect, it comes from being comfortable in your own skin and loving yourself. No amount of silicone and surgery can give you that, it has to come from you-by looking in the mirror and learning to love yourself exactly as you are-wobbly bits, imperfections, crows feet and all.
You know what I say? Sod growing old gracefully. Grow old ungracefully and let every line on your face show that you had a bloody good time doing it. Let your boobs sag and your wobbly bits wobble and stop striving so hard to be all the things that you're not. Because you don't need a surgeon to make you beautiful because you already are.

-Jenni-


*I realise, sadly, this will never happen due to the fact that it would not make anyone any money except some very happy psychiatrists. The surgeons would revolt!

Shit Just Got Real

Yeah, check me out, I have a degree, innit.

Yesterday I (as far as I am concerned) became a "proper adult"* because I graduated from my wonderful University of Sheffield. This means I unequivocally cannot claim to be a student and more, and really should start pretending to be being a responsible adult. As I have no real idea what I want to do with my life any more,** I don't really have a plan or purpose at the moment that is any more detailed than: 1. Get a full time job in Sheffield. 2. Move back to Sheffield. I am also acutely aware that the small amount of money in my bank account has to last me an indefinite amount of time. I'm normally quite good at budgeting-until-I-get-my-next-loan, but it's dawning on me that there won't be any more loans (at least not any time soon), and that I'm going to have to do something about this sharpish. It's all a bit brown-pants worthy to be honest. All of a sudden I'm having to try to work out what I want to do with my life, when I would much rather still be napping in the middle of the afternoon and exploiting my student discount to its fullest.

And although graduating means I have an actual degree and prospects and all that sort of stuff, I'm also quite sad because it means I have no real reason to visit my favourite city aside from social visits. Don't get me wrong, I fully intend to visit often for purely social reasons, but I don't like the feeling of displacement I get from knowing that I don't have a house there any more, knowing that sooner or later I will catch a train out of there back to my parent's house, which doesn't quite feel like home any more. Just...ugh. I can't help feeling disheartened after the awesome day yesterday that now is where the uphill struggle to be a normal functioning adult has to start, and I can't even find my walking shoes. (Yes, I like taking the analogies too far.)

And yet. I've got so much to look forward to, and so much to be grateful for. Without the help and support of my parents, I wouldn't even have got this degree, because I wouldn't have been able to afford to stay in university. I wouldn't have so many good things happening to me this summer because they are (as my birthday presents) paying for me to go and be in the Edinburgh Festival, a once in a lifetime opportunity,  and part-paying for my holiday to Rome (because my mum wants me to travel the world for her). I'm going to travel to various parts of the country to see friends, and have been offered so many floors to kip on in Sheffield that I can be well kept in happiness for a while. I've applied for a part time job in Nottingham and am waiting to hear back, which might stave off the money demons for a while yet. So yeah, it's definitely not all doom and gloom and terrifyingness. I'm just standing on the edge of the unknown wondering what happens when I jump. But I'll take my hat off to that:

This was fun.
P10, BMS Class of 2012

I'll let you know how it goes,
Jenni Thompson, BSc (Now that's cool!)

*She says as she eats a cream egg and is mildly excited about winning some glittery nailvarnish...
**After having my dreams placed firmly out of my reach (Thank you David Cameron!) and subsequently not actually achieving the right grades to get them anyway...

On The Flip Side

It occurred to me the other day just how often I say the phrase "it makes me want to punch them in the face". I don't think I am a horrible person, I just get annoyed really really easily, at all the little things that probably shouldn't matter. And really, everyone does from time to time, don't they? When you're having one of those days when it feels like the whole world is against you, it's really easy to get annoyed at those little things. Once a month or so, I do a list of some of the awesome things in my life, the little things that really make your day when they happen to you, but I was thinking about the other side, the things that just get on your nerves and make you grit your teeth, roll your eyes and grumble under your breath. A friend of mine joked that she was going to buy me the web-domain of Ihateeverything.com for my birthday, because I could easily fill a site like that with slightly ranty things. But instead, I'm going to do a similar post to my Awesome Things ones, only full of all those little things that are too annoying to warrant a full blog post of their own. Nothing important, nothing major, nothing life changing, just the tiny little, but still really annoying things.

Number 1: Two different types of music playing at the same time.
Drives me maaad. I can't focus on either one of them, but instead they mash together and just become awful awful noise. Aaaaaah!

Number 2: The limited number of adverts online TV providers have.
I realise that you see less adverts online than you do on the actual tele, and I'm not complaining about that. What I don't like is the fact that you can watch a show with 3 ad breaks, and watch the same four adverts in each one. It's not like you have long enough to get up and go to the loo in the break, so you have to suffer through them each time. It'd be so much better if you could have a little bit more variety, if only so I don't have to watch the same actress be amazed at the effects of her toothpaste*, or hear this guy say "yes some lovely sandwiches" again...

Number 3: People who cough/sneeze on public transport without covering their mouths.
Bler. You make me feel ill, and I can't physically hold my breath long enough to not get your germs. STOP IT, IT'S GROSS, STOP IT NOW.

Number 4: Small children's toys EVERYWHERE.
Seriously, I tread on at least one thing a day. And the whole of my house from about waist-down-height is sticky! It's HORRID. Eugh, children. No-one will ever be able to convince me that I would enjoying having some of my own.

Number 5: THIS.

Image source here

I mean WHAT? Why? Who the hell decided to make a fictional, computer generated meerkat an advertising point? Why are they STILL DOING THIS? At first, it was (And I totally agree) innovative and different and a bit fun. Now it's just annoying and ridiculous. They are selling adults insurance by offering them a free cuddly toy. It's madness. C'mon Compare the Market, Go Compare got the message that everyone hated their ads, time you do too. 

Ahhhh, that feels better. Time to stop stressing now and relaaaax.

Tata!


*NB Don't get me started on toothpaste adverts, they're full of pretend science and REALLY annoying. Does it clean my teeth? Yes. Does it taste of mint? Yes. That's all you need to know.