Roma and Beyond...

On Friday morning my San Martino D'Agri adventure came to an end. I can still only think about when I will get the chance to return.

We were picked up by another Zia and a cousin of Carm's. We spent Friday at their house, where we treated like a king and queen. I was not allowed to pay for anything, not even my bus ticket back to Rome! I tried to argue, but it was to no avail. Of course, there was also lots more mangia... The town in which they live is located right near the beach, where Italy splits into two. So it was very far South. It was a great time, and we left their house with a bit more than we came with. Literally, I am now the proud owner of a high end Italian sweat shirt, although I digress to what it actually says.

Rome was wonderful, we stayed with yet another Zia and cousin of Carm's. Again we were treated excellently and continued our gluttony. They were truly kind and caring people. As you can see by the pictures, we visited a good amount of Rome. I saw big papa (the pope) at the Vatican, although because of this, The Sistine chapel was closed. The Vatican was imposing and beautiful. The pope is like a king, and that is his palace. A bit ironic, but I digress yet again. We also made stops at The Spanish Steps, the Trevi Fountain (where I accidently threw my coin straight up and missed the fountain entirely), and of course the infamous Colosseum. Everything was awe inspiring and I very much enjoyed my short time in the city. So much so, that I was not even really bothered by how touristy it was.

After our adventure to the south we returned to what felt like home at this point, Florence. We came back with literally double the amount of bags we went with. A little bit of extra clothes, but they were mostly stuffed with foods collected in all three towns we stayed in. I guess they all thought we would get very hungry on the train ride back. I spent my last few days in Italy strolling around the city and taking things nice and slow. Thursday night we had a bit of a going away wine party for me. And by wine party I mean Carm, her two roommates, and myself sat around and drank a lot of wine (even cheap Italian wine was quite good). It turned out to be quite the bonding moment for all of us, and I enjoyed it much more than I would have enjoyed any huge celebration.

Now I am in Geneva, Switzerland. I am staying with a wonderful Algerian couple who now live in Geneva. I have tasted delicious Algerian foods, had intriguing political, religious, and plain funny conversations, and have enjoyed watching the snow fall outside. In fact I must say that I have enjoyed staying in and around the apartment area and spending time with my wonderful hosts more than exploring the city of Geneva (except for the amazingly delicious Lebanese Kebab place).

To be honest, I am not able to truly describe how great all of my hosts have been so far. Every single one of them has gone way above and beyond what is normally expected of a host. At every place, I have been treated like they are honored to have me as a guest. I'm really nothing special, it is just their mindset. The only way to really understand how wonderful and interesting each and every one of them has been, is to actually talk and interact with each one of them. Just know that I already feel like a changed person and have enjoyed my trip very much so because of the things I have been able to see, but mainly and most importantly because of the people that I have been fortunate enough to have interacted with. To think, I have only just begun...