NDC, Viterbo and Gelato: my last weeks in Rome

As my time in Rome is quickly coming to an end, I am spending my last few weeks making sure I connect with all the great people I have met. It is always hard to close a cycle, this is specially the case for me because I find it very hard to say goodbye to people.
Even so, this past week has been very special as I have had the opportunity to interact with many of the course members and the staff at the NDC in a more personal way. I have gone to dinner with three of the course members (from Belgium, Turkey and the US) and through our conversations I have not only learned more about them and their experiences, but they have also shared a lot of valuable life lessons with me. It is truly inspiring to hear what they have to say and to see all the things they have done that have led them to where they are today.

With some of the Course Members at "Jolie Jeudi" (social event in the evening)

I also took a day trip to Viterbo with one of the women that works at the college. Viterbo is a medieval city an hour away from Rome. It was founded by the Etruscans and later taken over by the Romans. Through its history, it developed into an important medieval center, and in the 13th century became the seat of the popes. During WWII it was bombed heavily in WWII, but a lot of its historic areas survived and today it is a great place to visit. Instead of boring you will all the details, here are some pictures. This particular day, there was a flower market all around the city which made it even prettier and a wonderful place to walk around.

 

The gelato festival also took place this weekend. I joined my roommate and her friend and together we went to check it out. I have never eaten so much ice cream in my life! The festival was a competition and visitors were invited to taste all the flavors and vote for their favorites. I don´t think we even made it through half of them but it was pretty amazing. Among my favorites there was a pistachio gelato, a strawberry red pepper sorbet and a dark chocolate rum gelato.

Strawberry red pepper sorbet

Me in a coma after so much gelato!

Finally this weekend I also organized a group tour as part of the Arts and History program at the College. The tour was about Caravaggio in the Churches and although I have been helping with this program throughout my time at the NDC, this time I was pretty much the one responsible for the logistics and the staff in charge during the event. What is nice about having this responsibility is knowing they trust me and that I am a reliable part of the team. The tour was really interesting and it was wonderful to get to see Caravaggio´s work in the settings and environment they were meant to be seen.

One of Caravaggio´s works

After the tour, the Course Members that attended insisted I join them for a drink. During these couple of hours I got into some very interesting conversations. Among them I began discussing feminism with one of the officers. The truth is I have never really considered myself a feminist in the way many of my peers do. I think that for me, in order to deal with inequality I have always tried to prepare myself as much as I can to be able to get the jobs that I wish to attain. However, during my time in Rome, I have felt that my role as a women is sometimes predefined, and my reasons for being here have sometimes been questioned. Even so, I have felt as though I have been able to prove that I am as capable as a guy and that I have a reason for wanting to be at NATO and for being there as well.
Even so, during this particular conversation, I was a little surprised to hear the course member tell me that is was undeniable that women and men have different aspirations. I believe that our aspirations are determined by our interests and what we want from life and not by particular societal norms, which is what I told him.
Without getting into much more detail, our conversation touched on aspects of being attracted to somebody in a professional environment. It seemed to me that in his view a man had to act on these emotions, however, this completely overlooked the fact that women may be attracted to somebody as well. In the end all I can say is that there are assumptions in place that really do make female/male interactions in the workplace difficult and sometimes even uncomfortable. This may be even more noticeable because of the military environment I have been working in. However, I do think that these conversations need to be had, but more than that, as individuals, we should not let society determine what we can, cannot, should or shouldn´t do. Our limitations are set by ourselves and only we are capable of achieving our own goals through hard work.

Adventures on the metro...

The metro in Rome is a very interesting place. Due to the amount of ruins that can be found under the city, it has been almost impossible for the city to build more than two lines. Currently, they are working on the third line near the Colosseo, unfortunately they continuously find new ruins and for the same reason it seems unlikely that they will ever finish it.

This situation makes getting anywhere by metro extremely slow as in order to switch lines you must always go to Termini, the main station and the only one that connects them. In order for me to reach my dance class which should be about a 25-30 minute drive (without traffic and with a dependable bus system-which is not the case in Rome), it takes me about an hour each way. This is why I usually try to make use of this time by reading or answering emails, etc. However, the metro is packed during rush hour and it is a hotspot for pickpocketing, so you have to be really careful about what you are carrying on you.

Map of the Metro

Even so, today I had an experience unlike any other. On my way back from Friday night services, a group of students on board, that were members of a religious group, started professing their strong religious faith on the train. I was on my own and it was late, so I just sat there listening to what they were saying. Although we have different faiths, I firmly believe in respect and I didn´t make much of it. A few minutes later, one of them approached me and started asking me whether I believed in Jesus, to what I responded that I was Jewish. He introduced himself and started asking me what I thought about what they had said, to which I replied that I had a different faith but that I respected his beliefs and that I thought that at the end of the day it was all about being a good person. He than asked me if he could pray for me and I said he could and that I would pray to him in return. To my surprise he sat down next to me and asked me to start praying. I looked at him in confusion and he said he meant right there. I wasn´t very comfortable with this so I told him I would pray for him in my own way which for me wasn´t on the train. I respectfully asked him to end the conversation there but he refused. I asked again and again until he finally agreed and walked away to join a different conversation on the train. At this point, the other members of the group which were sitting next to me and in front at me just stared disapprovingly, so I turned to one of them and in my rudimentary Italian told them that I thought each person should be able to make their own choices. None of them responded and they just kept on staring.

After a couple more stops, I realized that the girl sitting next to me was a native  English speaker, so I turned to her and asked her about what they were doing. She said it was a group of students that wanted to spread their love for Jesus. Perhaps it was my mistake all along for engaging with them, but I felt very frustrated and decided to explain to her why I felt so uncomfortable with the situation in order for us to perhaps reach an understanding. So I told her what it was like being Jewish and living in a predominantly Catholic country. I explained to her that I had just left a religious service that was guarded by three soldiers and that by many I was not liked because of my faith. I told her that I appreciated that what they were doing was creating a much needed conversation to remove barriers and generate the understanding and tolerance the world desperately needs, so I thanked her for that. However, I also told her, that I felt a bit uneasy about the way I was approached because I felt as though they were preaching to me and not really hearing me out. I told her that I believe in being a good person above all and I thought she was a good person as well, however that I also believed in respect and tolerance towards people that may think a little differently than you do. She listened, however, once I was done, she responded that for her Jesus was at the center and that there was nothing more important. I told her I respected that and although I had different beliefs we were all striving to become the best version of ourselves, that at the end of the day, through our actions we reflect what our religions are about, to which she just shook her head and told me that Jesus was everything and that this is what her life was centered around. At this moment I got to my stop, I turned to her and told her that although we may not see I to eye I respect her and I wish her the best.

I don´t know why this encounter affected me so much. I admire people who have such strong belief systems in the same way I do, but to me the way she responded unwilling to even acknowledge my point of view was very frustrating. It felt as though she saw me as misguided or inferior because I did not ascribe to the same belief system. But to me it is confusing because at the end of the day, faith should lead you to become a better person and to make the world a better place. So what does it matter what exactly you believe in, if it guides you towards bettering your life and that of those who surround you. So many people have died because of ideology rather than actions. We put so much weight into the intangible regardless of how it manifests itself in the physical world. I respect others and want to learn from them, however, in order to create a fruitful environment, others must do the same and this is what I felt was missing. Especially when I was alone on a train with people who felt differently than I did. 

Looking back, I could have chosen not to engage, to pretend I didn´t understand, or to just move to the next cart. Even so, to me this is the problem with our current system. We have been putting such a focus on political correctness and safe spaces, that we have forgotten the importance of honest dialogue in order to create understanding. However, in order to promote the kind of dialogue we are talking about we must be able to acknowledge and respect the other person's side, even if it is not exactly what we like to hear. To be clear, I respect these students for the way they think, but I wanted them to do the same in return, or at least acknowledge that there are other valid points of view.

I am not against any religion, and this is not an attempt to offend anybody, it is just a situation I lived through and an attempt to make sense of it. All I want is to be able to have a sincere conversation and to be understood as well as understand. It is very easy to just overreact, and I hope none of you do, as a matter of fact I would love to here your point of view. All I am saying is we need to shift our conversations towards learning, not just to say blank statements or get somebody to change their mind, but to create understanding and tolerance between people. The same way I respect other people's ways of thinking I would hope that others do not try to change mine just for the sake of it, if in the end its all about making this world a better place. 

Briefing the Course Members at the NDC...

I am having a bit of a hard time writing today's post because although it has been an extremely rewarding week, I have also been grappling with a lot of mixed emotions. First off, I am aware that my time at the NDC is coming to an end. Today I sat in on the last lecture the college will have before I leave and although there are three weeks to go, the Course members whom I have really gotten to know will only be here for one of those weeks. I hate endings and goodby's and although I have had to do this a lot in the past few years, it doesn't get any easier, and what makes this particular occasion even harder is how much more I enjoy my Coop every single day.

On Tuesday I was asked to brief the Senior Course on the Arts and History program. What this entailed is me standing in front of 40-50 military officers, or the civilian equivalent and deliver a presentation on Caravaggio. Although this sounds like a simple enough task, it is quite overwhelming to stand in front of people who have had so much experience and who know so much. I was extremely nervous about it, but in the end my supervisor was very happy with how it went. This has been one of the biggest challenges during my Coop. Although public speaking has never been a problem for me, standing in front of the NATO podium was a totally different experience and I am extremely relieved that I was able to deliver the presentation.

Life in Rome

Life in Rome has been challenging. Moving to a new country for Coop is different than studying abroad (whether that be at Northeastern in Boston, or in London for study abroad last semester). This is because, when you are on Coop, you are not part of a set program with people your age with whom you engage on a regular basis. Instead you need to meet people on your own. More often than not, the people you meet at work are older than you so it can be challenging to find a stable group of people. Although it has taken me longer to settle in, I am happy here. I love my job and coming to the College every day. I have forged great relationships with the staff and the Course Members and I am extremely engaged with the lectures I attend.

Even so, it can get lonely sometimes which is why you have to create a support network for yourself with people you can count on, things you like to do and goals that keep you motivated. I have done this through dance, the people I have met and finding ways to create work for myself at the College. As I come to my final month at the NDC I am extremely surprised at how quickly time has gone by. In a way I wish I could stay longer as I finally feel I am getting the hang of things. That is why having is 6 month Co-op is nice. Even so, I am excited to pursue new adventures in Israel where I will be doing the second part of my Coop at the Institute for Counter-Terrorism. More so, I am looking forward to being back on campus. Since I was studying abroad in London last semester, I haven't been in Boston for about a year and I haven't been in classes at Northeastern for about a year and a half (I did my first Coop the semester before studying abroad). I am eager to be back on campus and to apply what I have learned throughout this year and a half to my studies.