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Federico on What's bugging me. Raymond on What's bugging me. Gio on What's bugging me. To comment on any posting, click on the word 'Comments' at the end of the item. |
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« A summertime treat | Main | City of Cigarettes » June 29, 2006What's bugging me.Take a born-and-raised New England girl and plop her in a Mediterranean city during the summertime and what's going to bother her the most? Her skin. I was brought up with brutal winters, skiing, and wearing jackets on cool summer evenings. It's now nearing July in Rome and I don't think I'll ever get used to the sun and the heat. Shovelling snow from the driveway is nothing but a pleasant memory. But aside from the sweating and burning and peeling that I constantly endure, I've got a new itch to scratch. I was standing at the bus stop (a likely location for unwelcome happenings) when my legs began to itch. I looked down at my pasty pale skin and, to my horror, found that I was covered with huge, red bug bites! I hadn't noticed them before and began to wonder when I had time to get bit since I had been inside all day. To me, getting bug bites in the city is about as easy as, well, getting a slice of pizza. Some, like myself, seem to forget that winding through the vast city of Rome there is an enormous river: the Tiber. Although charming to stroll along with a romantic Roman and a gelato in hand, this river seems to attract the scum of the city. The water is polluted, the homeless reside under the bridges, and it makes for a perfect habitat for the tiger mosquitoes.
This pest has Asian origins and a taste for both humans and animals. The City of Rome is constantly campaigning to combat this problem, but I am (painfully) walking proof that they have yet to swat that bug. Ok...so maybe it wasn't a tiger mosquito that attacked me personally, but with this heat and humidity, the inflammations are not going down and wearing skirts or shorts is a cause for embarrassment.
Posted by Kelsea Commentshi Kelsea! as for mosquitos: here in Milan is even worse, but don't worry about showing some bites... it's quite normal during summer! :P waiting for your next post... Posted by: Gio at June 30, 2006 9:55 AM Hey! Its me again. Thanks for the info the other day. I read the last post and was wondering how hot it is exactly. Here in Puerto Rico its normally around 85 to 95 Farenheit. So how hot is it? And about the Tiber.. is the part with the bums around Trastevere? .. Is Trastevere a place for bums and poor people or rich people? I keep hearing different things.. some say its new shops and some talk about buskers and bums.. please let me know and keep on writing. Always nice reading your postings. Thanks,Take Care. Posted by: Raymond at July 1, 2006 3:54 AM Do you know why tiger mosqitos came here? http://www.infermiereprofessionale.it/content.asp?contentid=400 Rome has two rivers: Tevere and its tributary Aniene (north eastern area of the city). Many toponyms of Rome are called as "fosso" or also "marrana", "marranella", that means those areas (especially towards the sea and the south) were almost marshy. So you can understand that mosquitos are in our history, especially in those humid summer evenings. Ciao, Fede Posted by: Federico at September 15, 2006 7:23 AM |
Kelsea Brennan-Wessels is a sophomore at The American University of Rome |
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Comments
hi Kelsea!
i'm an italian guy living in Milan. i found your blog just yesterday and i already read it all!
please, go on writing about your roman life!!
as for mosquitos: here in Milan is even worse, but don't worry about showing some bites... it's quite normal during summer! :P
waiting for your next post...
Posted by: Gio | June 30, 2006 9:55 AM
Hey! Its me again. Thanks for the info the other day. I read the last post and was wondering how hot it is exactly. Here in Puerto Rico its normally around 85 to 95 Farenheit. So how hot is it? And about the Tiber.. is the part with the bums around Trastevere? .. Is Trastevere a place for bums and poor people or rich people? I keep hearing different things.. some say its new shops and some talk about buskers and bums.. please let me know and keep on writing. Always nice reading your postings. Thanks,Take Care.
Posted by: Raymond | July 1, 2006 3:54 AM
Do you know why tiger mosqitos came here?
http://www.infermiereprofessionale.it/content.asp?contentid=400
Rome has two rivers: Tevere and its tributary Aniene (north eastern area of the city). Many toponyms of Rome are called as "fosso" or also "marrana", "marranella", that means those areas (especially towards the sea and the south) were almost marshy.
So you can understand that mosquitos are in our history, especially in those humid summer evenings.
Ciao, Fede
Posted by: Federico | September 15, 2006 7:23 AM