Claudia Gray's Blog, page 10
June 27, 2010
a few questions as I prepare to leave Italy
Only three more days left here in lovely Rome! I broke down and did a bit more shopping today, but from now on I am mostly taking it easy and revisiting a few favorite places. (Plus FINALLY getting to the Roman Forum ... aka the very first place I attempted to go and the only major attraction I've not gotten to even once!) But I have a couple of questions for Roman/Italian readers, things I have not been able to puzzle out on my own:
1) Prego is usually translated in English as "you're welc...
1) Prego is usually translated in English as "you're welc...
Published on June 27, 2010 17:02
June 23, 2010
fun facts I have learned about travel in Rome
1) Even if the train from Ostia Antica to Rome appears to be heading in the exact opposite direction than it should, you should probably go for it asap instead of waiting until the doors nearly shut on you.
2) If the doors are nearly shutting on you, do not assume that they are configured like US subway doors, which will bounce open upon bodily contact to preserve human life. These Italian doors mean business. In or out, they say (in Italian).
3) This means that if you just barely manage t...
2) If the doors are nearly shutting on you, do not assume that they are configured like US subway doors, which will bounce open upon bodily contact to preserve human life. These Italian doors mean business. In or out, they say (in Italian).
3) This means that if you just barely manage t...
Published on June 23, 2010 16:05
June 19, 2010
hello from Rimini
Today I traveled from Rome to Rimini, Italy, for the Mare di Libri festival. Tomorrow morning, I'll be on a panel (at 10 a.m.) called "More Than Vampires," where we'll talk about the paranormal trends in YA literature and in publishing overall. If you are in the vicinity, please come -- I would love to meet some of you there!
I'm really loving Rimini so far, though this may be because I got to travel here via train, enjoying the lovely countryside. Or maybe because my hotel here HAS INTERNE...
I'm really loving Rimini so far, though this may be because I got to travel here via train, enjoying the lovely countryside. Or maybe because my hotel here HAS INTERNE...
Published on June 19, 2010 22:43
June 13, 2010
Sniffles abroad
Well, I've had an absolutely marvelous trip in Rome so far, the high point of which was probably my birthday yesterday, which involved not only the best risotto ever but also a chocolate cake so good I suspect its consumption is a sin in some minor religions. But this morning I woke up with a cold. :( It promises to be a bad one, too; my throat's been swelling tighter and tighter throughout the day. Happily, "decongestant" turns out to translate just fine. If I need to spend the next few ...
Published on June 13, 2010 16:48
June 8, 2010
Today in Rome: Dem Bones
I went out and about, but decided that my touristy activities were going to be highly concentrated on museums and churches ... i.e., cool places, because the blazing summer heat has arrived here in Rome. No photos today, because the single coolest/creepiest place I went doesn't allow photography: the Capuchin cemetery, where the monks used the bones of lots and lots and LOTS of people to create, um, decoration. As in ribs and vertebrae embedded in the walls to create deceptively delicate fl...
Published on June 08, 2010 16:30
June 7, 2010
Viva Madrid!
Well, my four days in Madrid were absolutely sensational, thanks to all of you who came out to the book fair. My internet connectivity problems continue, and look likely to persist throughout my time here -- there always has to be ONE thing keeping the trip from being perfect, right? -- but while I have a moment of online time, I can point you to the photos here, which show you the high points of my time in Madrid, including lovely street scenes, the madness of the fair itself, and the two v...
Published on June 07, 2010 18:53
June 2, 2010
some Rome pics, plus rough Madrid schedule!
Hello, everybody! I am now settling in here in Rome -- just in time to leave for the Madrid Book Fair tomorrow. It's quite a whirl. But so far I am having a wonderful time. My internet access here is a little unreliable, so I am going to post this link to my Rome pictures so far; hopefully soon I can figure out how to be online long enough, stably enough, to post the pictures here direct.
Today's adventures: I figured I would begin with the Forum, but this turned out to be the king of al...
Today's adventures: I figured I would begin with the Forum, but this turned out to be the king of al...
Published on June 02, 2010 18:58
May 29, 2010
test post 2
One more test post, guys. The zombies draw closer. Do not panic.
Published on May 29, 2010 18:17
test post
We're testing a new posting interface -- stand by for further instructions in case of zombie apocalypse.
Published on May 29, 2010 18:03