Flashbacks for the present
Posted: May 21, 2010 at 6:07 amToday’s Flashback Friday will continue with my travels, since you all said you enjoy them. I enjoy writing them as well. It is fun to relive such an amazing trip. It is also interesting to read through my travel journal and see some of my thought processes. I have something to discuss that bothered me when reading through my entries. First, let’s look at all of the pictures and the fun stuff. Today’s flashback is to our week in Rome. Love.
We spent a good deal of time in Rome because there is just too much to see! I mean, you can’t go to one of the biggest empires EVER and not take time to explore it. From the many churches to the colossal historic ruins and monuments, we had plenty to keep us occupied.
Our first day we hit up most of the major tourist attractions. We started off at the Trevi Fountain and tossed the obligatory coin into it. It is said that if you toss a coin over your shoulder into the fountain you will return to Rome before you die. I certainly hope that is true. I want to go back to Europe so badly!
After stopping there, we headed straight to the Pantheon. I had no idea it used to be a pagan worship arena.
History has never been my strong point. Although seeing things in person definitely makes them more interesting. A reason I would love to go to Israel. The only history that truly fascinates me is in the Bible and it would be so cool to see that region up close and personal. But Italy sure does have cool history too. Evident in the ruins and the Colosseum…
It feels like you’re on a movie set because it is so hard to wrap your mind around the fact that these are the real deal.
The remainder of our time in Rome, we simply enjoyed the city and explored, as well as took some day trips I will share next week. We loved visiting the many beautiful churches. I’m not even talking about St. Peter’s Basilica yet. That’s part of next week too. There are so many gorgeous places of worship. The detail and art masterpieces within the walls seem more like museums than churches, but there are people praying and worshipping all around as well. I loved it.
I admit to doing some silly sightseeing as well. I was reading Dan Brown’s Angel & Demons book during my travels and had to check out some of the locales from the book. Like this statue that, in the book, pointed to the next point on the “path to Illumination”. It’s a good book. I highly recommend it.
There is one highlight of Rome that sticks out to me. That was the one fancy dinner we took on the entire trip. We had a strict budget for most of the trip, but when we saw this nice Italian restaurant that made their pasta fresh daily right outside the Pantheon, we took up the splurge. I remember we shared some fresh lasagna & ravioli, a delectable salad, and a bottle of the house white wine. All with the Pantheon front and center.
I’m just sad I didn’t know the importance of food pictures then. I have none to share of what was hands down one of the best meals of my life. No, I’m not exaggerating. Italians know how to do pasta right. Seems like a “duh” thing to say, but there really are no other words to explain it. Fly to Italy now and experience it! If only, right?
This part of our trip was fabulous. Every day was an adventure. What saddened me while reading my journal was the fact that I didn’t seem to live it fully with that mindset. While I obviously enjoyed myself, I still made comments in my journal about wishing the time to pass quicker or other negative things. There were things about missing Peter and my family with a countdown of how many days until I could see them. Instead, I should have simply recognized I would see them soon enough but may not ever come back to Italy and then reveled in being there. I griped about how hot the hostel was in Rome thanks to no A/C, windows that didn’t open, and sharing a room with 20+ people. Um, hello??? You’re in Rome and experiencing new things that many don’t get the chance to! Get over yourself!
And what really pissed me off? During the passage that described the fancy Italian dinner I complained about feeling fat after the meal and how “luckily we walk a lot to burn off all those carbs”. How sad! I probably enjoyed the meal more remembering it than I did during it because I obviously had some anxiety. It saddens me that my negative relationship with food affected such a special moment in that way. I’m thankful I can now enjoy food with minimal issue, but who knows if I will have the same chance to taste such a delightful meal in a once-in-a-lifetime setting? I missed the full experience of it by worrying unnecessarily. My point is, don’t allow anxiety, worry, and stress to keep you from the current moment. Live life in the present. Really savor the life you are experiencing. Right now. Don’t give yourself a chance for regrets and don’t get caught up in negativity. Blessings surround us every moment. Open your eyes to them and live.
- What is a moment you missed experiencing fully because of worry or negativity?
- Have you read any of Dan Brown’s books? Would you have played the total nerd and gone looking for some of the places described in the book too?
- What is one of the best meals of your life?
Come back later for my post on last night’s Flavors of Forsyth fun!
Tags: flashbacks, healthy eating, travel
Rome is seriously breathtaking. I’ve had some moments that I did not allow myself to enjoy because of worry. It was mostly worry about what other people thought about a situation I was in. It would be wonderful to be able to go back and redo those experiences and take them in for what they were.
I went to Rome when I was 22. I would love to go back. One of my favorite meals was, sort of oddly, at a friend’s rehearsal dinner. She’s Japanese and her parents were friends with the owners of a local Japanese restaurant. They just kept bringing out food after delicious food.
I have read his books and think it’d be fun to visit the spots in the book. Yep, nerd. I actually am notorious for worrying the fun right out of things. I did myself a favor on a trip to Seattle and forced myself to get on a 4-seater plane flown by our friend to go out to the San Juan Islands (Friday Harbor to be exact). I was terrified (hate to fly), but I was determined to not miss out on the opportunity.
Looks like a fabulous trip!
Hello 🙂 I just found your blog after Ellie linked to what you wrote about intuitive eating. I’m really working on that right now, and your stuff is very helpful, so thank you!!
I want to go to Rome so much!!! I’m looking into going this summer, actually (:
Anyway, I really like your blog and look forward to reading more xxxx
what beautiful pictures! I have never been overseas.
I looooved Rome. I went to Italy with my dad when I was 15 or 16. It was actually the first time I was ever drunk–too much wine got to me haha! :).
I’ve experieced that anxiety on vacations many times and Im pretty sure I’ve also used that exact same thought–good thing I can walk it off!
Those pictures are amazing! I can’t imagine seeing all of that in real life. I am like you, though, I am not a history person. I agree that visiting the real thing makes it a lot more interesting!
Don’t be too hard on yourself about your journal. We have all been there and the best thing is – look how much your attitude has improved! Some people never reach the mature level of being appreciative for the great things in life, but clearly you have, and there’s no reason to be disappointed in yourself for not always being good at it.
we went on a fabulous vacation through the us & british virgin islands last year…and i had a great time, but i remember a couple of times that the trip was brought down b/c of my fat talk and negative body image. we’re going to Kauai later this year and i’m determined to enjoy the whole thing regardless of what i eat!
Love the new site!
Looks like an amazing trip- I have definitely missed out on a lot of things because my head was in the wrong place, but really…you have the memories and you can relive the parts you want to remember like the food, the history…you know? And you can always plan to go back one day. Most of my trips to New York have had a shadow cast over them by my eating disorder, but when I look back, I focus on the amazing parts 🙂
Best meal I have ever eaten was pizza in France- didn’t make it as far south as Italy (coming from the UK) but Europeans know how to make good pizza…
I wish we could afford to go to europe this year 🙁
What a great trip! I have never been to Rome but I am looking forward to getting there one of these days. I too regret not appreciating my trips and worrying about finding a gym or something equally lame. I know better now and I am trying to make up for it!
How incredible to eat such an amazing meal in such an awesome place!! I know what you mean about letting anxiety get in the way of fully enjoying something. After Andrew proposed, he told me he made reservations for us at an awesome french bistro in buckhead, but instead of being excited, I was sooooooo worried about having no idea how much what in everything. Oh if only I could go back in time and shake myself into not worrying about such SILLY stuff and to just focus solely on being happy and in love.
I want to go to Italy!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🙂
I love Rome!!! I had a great time there. LOTS of pasta. And I didn’t even think about it at the time. It seemed just to work itself out. I am dealing with those regrets more now. At the time I was a 21 year old who could eat absolutely anything to the point of being stuffed and it didn’t matter. Those were the good old days…
Weirdly, I didn’t love the pizza in Italy! Pizza is one of my favorite foods, but I admit to actually really liking the carb heavy, fake cheese American version better than the traditional Italian with a thin, crispy crust and a ton of sauce. I felt like such a hypocrite saying that but… I missed bad delivery pizza from America and just kind of stuck with pasta when I was there. But Italians know their pasta, so I had many a delicious meal. One of my favorites was these little noodles that look like tiny worms (ew, I know, but SO good) that I had with authentic fresh pesto in Cinque Terre.
I have read all of Dan Brown’s books and I definitely thought of them a lot when I was traveling in Europe! Couldn’t help it 🙂