Since I have been a bad blogger, I have to fill you in on some of the past few months which were full of interesting Roman experiences. I think it was around the holidays that I began to slack off so I have to recount the story of Christmas in Rome. I am nuts about Christmas and I was very excited to celebrate Roman style. Christmas is far less commercial in Italy and while that sounds like it would be a good thing, it began to wear on me when I was unable to find suitable gift bags and had to resort to wrapping presents with double sided tape since I had no idea where to find "scotch" which is what they call scotch tape. If only they had drug stores here that sold more than drugs!The lack of commercialism also frustrated my desire to shop for and buy the perfect presents and Christmas trappings. I was thrilled when I heard that, miracle of miracles, there would be a Christmas market in Piazza Navona. I envisioned the equivalent of the Union Square Christmas market where you can find truly unique things from up and coming designers and handmade goodies. Chris and I began our search for our tree there two weeks before Christmas. Unfortunately we discovered that the main attractions at the Navona market were Ciambelloni (giant donuts) and moss-covered manger scenes reminiscent of the 70s. There was not a tree or wreath to be found, not to mention any interesting gifts unless you are interested in plastic gladiator costumes. We looked around the center of Rome for hours in desperation. I once got excited thinking I saw a bunch of trees for sale at the far end of a piazza but when I got there I was disappointed to see that it was only a restaurant entrance covered in fake evergreen boughs. We finally found two trees at the florist in Campo de' Fiori, one of which was sold and one of which was the epitome of a Charlie Brown tree but with a wopping price tag. We went home dejected. There is nothing more sad to me than Christmas without a tree. I take after my mother in my emotional attachment to seasonal evergreens. Together we would lobby for a large tree against my father's practical arguments for a smaller one. We had to plead with my dad to leave the tree up until New Year's Day, a compromise since I would have left it up all year round. I resigned myself to the worst case scenario: Christmas with a faux tree from Ikea.
When I ran out to get groceries later that night I thought I saw some Christmas trees as I passed by the combination florist and gas station. I was cautious because of my experience with the Christmas tree mirage earlier but when I got closer I realized it wasn't a vision - there were real trees there! I didn't have enough cash to buy one on the spot (nor did I have the means to transport it) but I was relieved to see we would have a real evergreen for Christmas. The actual purchase waited until my best friend Ali arrived because tree stands do not exist here. They actually pot the tree. We needed someone to assist in carrying not only the tree but the pot and the dirt! And we thought pine needles were messy--no wonder Romans don't buy live trees!
