As I was not contemplating the end of my young life, people called the police.
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Going home again
After a two-year absence, I returned to Rome on a half-empty Alitalia flight. The plane door had closed, and I [...]
Casting Call
Would-be American filmmaker Andrew Gallagher, smitten by Rome, want to make a movie about expats.
Cruise Control
“There’s also the matter of possessing women called Nicole, called Penelope, called Katie (the latest is most beloved), and what that means in the primeval canon of testosterone.”
Benedict, Driving
"Mine, says Benedict, will be a papacy of ideas. The Pole was (how just to say it?) too geographical, too physical, too public. It’s hard to always adore so much motion."
Birds of Rome
“You cannot have moist lips in the world of birds. People misunderstand. They imagine movie clips where construction workers whistle at passing girls.”
Touch Me
At a cocktail party in Rome, women line up for inspection. They are 30, they are 40, they are 50. They have tanned skin and plasticized breasts.
Too much at home
The U.S. study-abroad programs I know in Florence do their best to protect their students from culture shock. But take away all risk and challenge from a study-abroad experience and you effectively remove any chance for a real intercultural exchange. Opt for 100 percent security and you kill what living and studying abroad should be about.
Slip It On
The Italian word for slip never alludes to practical function or sexuality.
The lemon tree
She wore a simple white silk dress, stiletto heels, was slightly tan, and smelled like the beach.
The Flavor of Flavia
Scraping as much money together as I possibly could, I followed her to Naples.