Part of my study abroad trip to London and Rome in September is a series of blog posts about some assigned readings, and reflections upon them. This is the eighth such post, and is one of two about Anthony Doerr’s Four Seasons in Rome.
I know nothing. I lived in Rome four seasons. I never made it through the gate between myself and the Italians. I cannot claim to have become, in even the smallest manner, Roman. And yet I can’t stop myself: a pen, a notebook, the urge to circumscribe experience.
– excerpt from page 201 of Anthony Doerr’s Four Seasons in Rome
It’s a bit overwhelming to think about. Doerr spent a year in Rome and couldn’t ever feel like he’d become part of the culture, absorbed the essence of being there. I’ll be there for seven days, and a bit of the time will be in the areas outside of Rome.
I already know that I am going to want to go back. So much that I want to see in the city, so much history and art. So little time on this trip. Seven days to try desperately to scratch the surface of a city that is two millennia old. Overwhelming to think about and the trip is still a month away.