Day 8 - Saffron and Pistachio & Hazelnut

Bienvenuto!

This post might be a little shorter today. I am exhausted. I went on an adventure that I decided to turn into a blog post. I would like to preface the main body of this post by saying (SPOILERS): Mom, I’m okay. I made it safely.

How to Get Lost In Rome: A Beginner’s Guide

Want to tour Rome? Tired of dragging your study abroad group around with you everywhere? Getting lost is the thing to do. I highly recommend it. I am here to tell you that it was so easy, even I could do it! Now that’s easy. There are a couple of steps that you should undertake and then you, too, can get lost in a giant city.

Preparing

See this clock tower landmark? Forget it

I may have a step up on the general populace. I have a TERRIBLE sense of direction. I get lost following a straight street for a half mile. Before you die of envy, here are some things you can do to be like me:

Ignore all landmarks. This takes time in a city like Rome, where it seems like there is an important monument at every corner. I recommend counting selfie sticks to distract yourself if you find this to be difficult.

Fold your map so that you can only see an arbitrary part of it. Refusing to look like a tourist by walking around with your face in a giant map is essential to getting lost.

Forget all addresses. The address of your apartment? Gone. The address of the study abroad center? Vanished. Don’t worry. After your getting lost experience, you can relearn these or simply follow someone else in your group whenever you travel for the rest of the trip.

Initial Steps

To some, this may seem like the most difficult part, but it really isn’t. All you have to do is take advantage of the normal course of the day.

There comes a time when people stop agreeing on what to do. Some people want to go home and shower, some people want to eat (somewhere. They are never clear on where), some people want to work on homework. This debate will be happening on the way to some central location or meeting place. In the midst of this conversation, decide what you want to do urgently. Urgency is essential, as it prompts action. For example, I decide that I can’t walk another stop without ducking into a pizzeria for a handful of prosciutto and mozzarella pizza. Vaguely mumble this to the nearest person. Then… you act! Duck into that pizzeria, or that port-a-potty, or chase that pigeon. The hardest part is done once you have separated yourself from the group.

How to Proceed

Ideally, your urgent task is a short one. It only needs to take as long as it takes for your group to get

out of sight. After you finish, pick a direction. This direction can be kinda-sorta in what you think is the right way, or a completely random. I recommend the former; there is a higher chance of getting completely lost.

It is important to never truly acknowledge that you are lost. This may lead to doing things that will ruin being lost, like asking for help on your cellphone that you are given to use when you are lost.

It's an easy mistake to make. Source. Source.

Remember when I told you to forget landmarks? Here is where they come into play again. Vaguely remembering routes based on landmarks is even better than not remembering at all. I went to the Roman Forum twice thinking that I was taking the way away from it, because I got the Victor Emmanuel Monument confused for the Castel St. Angelo.

Get sidetracked a little bit. Now is a great time. Get some shopping done, for example, or visit a landmark you haven’t been to yet so you can act all knowledgeable when you go with your group. Unburdened by others, you can get distracted all you want. You’re lost! Enjoy it!

I went to the Pantheon on my lost!

Getting Unlost

My pub was Irish

But wait, I can hear you exclaim, I wanted to get lost! Why would I want to get unlost? Getting unlost is actually an essential part of the getting lost process, as it usually involves food, water, and finally getting to use the bathroom, above and beyond the fun stories you get to tell.

First of all, now is the time to remember about where you were supposed to be going in the first place. In Rome, most addresses are on either streets (called Via) or a Piazza. Figure that out.

You're damn right I earned it

Now, you need to figure out where you are. If you did a good enough job of getting lost, you can’t locate your current location on a map. This is where the pub comes in. Go in, sit at the bar. When the waitress comes over, resist the urge to ask her to put rum in your coke. Things aren’t that bad, pansy. Instead, order something cheap and nonalcoholic, and then casually show her your map and ask her to make a dot where you are on it. Usually, your location will surprise you. This is normal.

Find the most straightforward route to your destination as possible. This can be a major road or a riverside. The only requirement is that you must be able to confirm that you are still on it once in a while. This walk may take quite a bit. Take in the sights. Once you reach your destination, get gelato. You earned it!

The Gelato

This is my new favorite gelato place.

Saffron and pistachio & hazelnut

And a picture post-chocolate shell. Guess
which is the saffron.

Ciao!

I need a nap…

The purple is roughly the route I remember taking.