Kristy's European Adventure: ROMA!

Rome was a whirlwind with way too much to see and not enough time to see all this city has to offer. Don't let some of the pictures fool you, there were no good hair days with only a few patches of sunshine and spending time tending to war wounds from the Battle of the Off the Street Roman Umbrella- where the Roman Wind Gods quickly turned the cute water deflection devices into weapons of self destruction within five minutes after purchasing.....silly humans trying to keep some form of a hairdo - When in Rome....

If I have to come completely clean, the best part of Rome was the food....we had the best pizza, pasta and GELATO I have ever tasted, and if you know me, you know that I consider pizza a food group and myself a connoisseur of sorts! In the four days we were there, my waistline definitely increased, but it was so worth it! One of the best dinners was our farewell at the home of Giuseppe Battaglia and his wife (MMF 2007). Co-hosted by Carlo Papa (MMF 2002) and Mattia Cavanna (MMF 2008), the spread of quiche, roasted artichokes, Sicily Cheese and lemon marmalade (my new favorite), salami, pesto pasta, tomato meat sauce pasta and Tiramisu was all absolutely amazing...and yes, I tried everything!

Highlights of the fellowship included a guided tour of the Quirinal Palace, built in 1583 and the summer home to Pope Gregory XIII, then Nepolian, King Victor Emmanuel III and now the residence of the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano.

From the cultural perspective, we visited Merlini and Storti Restoration Studios who restored the Caravaggio paintings then toured the exhibit at the Scuderie Del Quirale museum where his most representative works are included.

From the business perspective we met with Economists and MMF Alums, Antonio Bassanetti (2004) and Roberto Torrini (2003) from the Bank of Italy. Italy has experienced two consecutive years of negative growth. Unemployment rose and retail sales and manufacturing declined. Italy also has a large aging population and they currently have a weak state of public finances.

Another interesting visit was with the Italian Department of Civil Protection where we met with Agostino Miozzo, Director General of International Relations and Voluntary Service Officer. The best comparison for the US is their version of FEMA. We were at the operation headquarters and had an interesting talk and tour about their disaster relief protocol and process.

But enough chatter, on to a few pictures of this leg of the trip….

Our Group at the Palace: (from left to right) Tour Guide, Stacey Ackerman, Jason Tamam, Anton Seals, Kristy Teskey and Shannan Hicks