Rome is intoxicating; it is breathtaking, and that’s the impression after only a few hours strolling along one Via Del Corso in the dreary grey autumnal afternoon fighting a sea of black-cloaked Italians and tourists - with limited funds. (Not only is purchasing the Euro with the weakening US dollars a painful ordeal, but the charge of 19.5% commission on top quickly transformed this member of the "Poverty Jet Set" into a penurious, thoughtful traveler.)
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| Hotel Villa Glori in the leafy residential neighborhood of Flaminia. |
I landed at midnight from Stockholm Arlanda into Fiumicino Airport but it took another hour and a half before the conveyor belt spewed out the luggage. But I was well armed with The Roots of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence by the awesome Ervin Staub, the retired acclaimed psychology professor and a very dear friend. (This book and Ervin require its own journal entry, as well as the Reconciliation Course and Stockholm.) Moreover, nothing could dampen my mood and the tingling sensation of being in Rome, even if only then at the airport.
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Facing Genocide is nominated for Best Documentary at the International Rome Film Festival 2010, the reason for my presence in Rome.
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For more information, visit on Facing Genocide:
My patience of good spirits paid off grandly when greeted by a very handsome Italian chauffeur holding a sign “CINEMA: Theary Seng”. The half hour ride to the cozy, elegant Hotel Villa Glori turned into one-hour as he circled a couple of neighborhoods awhile looking for the hotel, but no offense or irritation taken on my end (!). The glowing Dome of the Vatican piercing the shrouded darkness and shadows took my breath away; sawing my transparent awe and silly smiles, he asked in his limited English whether it was my first time visiting.
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| The north entrance into Piazza Del Popolo, with obelisk in the middle. |
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| Theary Seng in the middle of Piazza Del Popolo in front of obelisk, 31 Oct. 2010. |
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| Still in the middle of Piazza Del Popolo, about to walk the length of the Via Del Corso (backdrop). |
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| The presence of the International Rome Film Festival is everywhere, here on the Via Del Corso. |
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| On the Via Del Corso. |
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| The Italian Parliament viewed from Via Del Corso. |
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| One of the many ornate Catholic churches in Rome, here on the Via Del Corso. |
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| Piazza Del Popolo is on the north end; here the south end of the Via Del Corso. |
As it rained this morning, I decided to save the Vatican City for another day. However, I wanted some fresh air and decided to make a quick trip to the city center, mainly with the goal to exchange money. The outing turned to be a several hour stroll on Via Del Corso from Piazza Del Popolo. Every building captivated and I had to repress the urge to take a photo of every building and sculpture, not to mention my late afternoon lunch. I had the best slice of pizza and wine – ever!
Paris, until now the most beautiful city to me, has been debunked by Rome, despite the pervasive graffiti on the historic buildings and walls and the strewn cigarette buds in the cracks of the cobbled stone pavement and squares. I believe the whole of Rome is a Unesco heritage site; it should be if not so.
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| A memorial on a building on Via Del Corso. |
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| Reminded me of the Stumbling Stones in Berlin; here a Stumbling Stone on a Via Flamenia pavement in front of a building to commemorate the Jewish residents who used to live there and were deported and killed. |
The next Nobel Peace Laureate in this series is fittingly an Italian – Ernesto Teodoro Moneta. The emphasis, again, is mine.
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