rome for work!

a lot has happened in my life since i last updated this blog (sorry, fail)...but for now i just want to write about my trip to rome and greece. i went to rome with work (i know!) to the FAO's committee on fisheries (COFI), which meets every two years. [sidenote: going to this meeting was really important for me as a Fellow - i really wanted the opportunity of going to a bilateral, an RFMO meeting, and a big international multilateral - and this fit the bill for the big international multilateral. seeing how i think i want to work for the UN, this was an amazing experience for me. i simply cannot express my gratitude to my office for giving me this opportunity.]

so the meeting itself was fairly interesting (for me). the discussion ranges among a variety of global fisheries issues - illegal fishing, small-scale fisheries, ocean governance, state of the world fisheries stocks, and how countries are progressing with the implementation of the code of conduct for responsible fisheries. mostly it's reading of written statements and not much discussion, but there were a few things in this agenda that created some discussion. it was quite educational for me to see the meeting and how these big international meetings work as well as hear what countries have to say on these big issues. it was great.



[FAO meeting hall]


plus. FAO is in rome and right near the colosseum and roman fora. this is the view from their cafeteria on the eighth floor.





so i spent most of my time in rome at the FAO building at COFI, but got two days to wander around - the day i arrived and the morning before i left. and when you wander aimlessly around rome, you end up at places like the trevli fountain, spanish steps, and pantheon. amazing. so here's my tour:



[a roman street]


[ruins]


[colosseum]


[roman fora]


[tomb of the unknown soldier]


[trevi fountain]


[spanish steps]


[pantheon]


[pantheon ceiling]


[sant'agnese in piazza navarona]


[tevere river]


i was in rome nine years ago after i graduated from high school (my god so long ago) and what i remember most distinctly from that trip is coming out of the metro and whoa! there's the colosseum - right there in the middle of the city. this contrast still shocks me. there you are wandering around a modern city and there are thousands-years-old ruins just right there.

so my walking tour of rome over two days meant seeing a lot of things quickly and not delving into rome as much as i would prefer, and it was really a quick visit to the sites to see. i figure that someday, ivan and i will be back and i would prefer to explore these things more in depth with him.

i ended up at st. peter's basilica on touring day two, but didn't go into the vatican museums (sooooooooo tempting. the sistine chapel!). i'm not catholic (or particularly religious), but st. peter's is stunning.



[st. peter's basilica]


[plaza in front of st. peter's. love those arms reaching out.]


[nave of st. peters]


[the pietá]


[1 of 2 of ceilings. i can't help it]


[2 of 2 of ceilings. so beautiful]


it really just takes your breath away. it feels powerful (maybe it's those ridiculously high ceilings. my god how did they do that?) and the energy of the place is vibrant. i must have heard 15 languages will inside. i love that this icon draws in so many people from so many cultures and walks of life.

so. brief tour of rome and then it was off to greece for a week! more later...

p.s. i took a lot of photos on this trip .... more photos will be up on facebook shortly.